Meet our members: Nikki and James Yoxall, Rottal Estate
Nikki and James Yoxall produce beef on the 3000ha Rottal Estate, in the Angus Glens, on the edge of the Cairngorms National Park. The farm is organic and they are Pasture for Life certified.
The estate is owned by Dee Ward, who has been undertaking a number of wildlife and biodiversity restoration and conservation activities over the last 20 years.
Topography at Rottal varies from 700ft, up to as much as 3000ft and is primarily made up of heather moorland. It also comprises 200ha of trees and 100ha of low ground grazing.
Alongside farming, enterprises on the estate include holiday cottages, a wedding venue, a hydroelectric scheme, deer stalking and hosting walked-up shooting.
Adopting regenerative farming
Nikki worked in various sectors, including land-based education, before forming Grampian Graziers with husband James, a former mechanic, in 2019.
Together they undertook regenerative grazing contracts with a number of Scottish landowners before entering a farming partnership at Rottal. Alongside food production, the cattle will play an important part in increasing biodiversity and building soil health and structure to reduce the risk of flooding and runoff.
Nikki and James Yoxall at Rottal Estate
Nikki, who is also Technical Director for Pasture for Life, says the decision to use a fully outdoor mob-grazing system from the start was partly driven by financial necessities, as well as the environmental benefits, animal health and the quality of the meat.
“When we first started we simply could not afford to farm conventionally,” says Nikki.
“The way people conventionally farm in the north of Scotland is to put the cattle inside in sheds for months but we couldn’t afford a shed, or a tractor or straw or feed.
“We had to find another way of producing really high quality beef without getting into debt. But by doing it differently you see so many other benefits as well.
“We don't have risks and issues around pneumonia, because often when animals are housed, poor circulation means that you get a significantly increased pneumonia risk. We're not having to manage or deal with waste products like farmyard manure or straw or slurry or anything like that.
“We had to find another way of producing really high quality beef without getting into debt. But by doing it differently you see so many other benefits as well.”
“Our system is entirely reliant on the sward and on pasture. We provide the livestock with fresh grazing graze and we create opportunities for them to take shelter when they need it. We know that is key to high welfare outcomes for livestock.
“When you move them every day you can pick up issues very quickly. You get to know them really well.”
Making the move to Rottal Estate
Dee says Nikki and James’ approach will complement the work he has already been doing on the estate.
“I’ve done a lot of environmental work here, planted a lot of trees and done a lot of peatland restoration and flood mitigation; we’re very much focused on wildlife and biodiversity,” he says.
“I wanted to do more rotational grazing, which I thought was necessary to improve soil health and for all the other benefits it brings.
“To me it’s a win-win. We can generate some income and deliver much more holistic and beneficial outcomes to the estate and to society and wildlife and nature.”
“I've lived here long enough to know that if we don't look after nature and we don't get it right, we won't have a future. On an upland estate like this, unless you farm efficiently and you reduce your inputs, you'll also never make any money.
Dee Ward: “On an upland estate like this, unless you farm efficiently and you reduce your inputs, you'll never make any money.”
“I know very little about livestock and I wanted to get somebody in who was an expert and hit the ground running. Nikki and James obviously fill that description. I couldn’t find two better people to do it with.
“There is also the opportunity to create long-term income streams from biodiversity net gain and carbon sequestration and other ecosystem services.
“To me it’s a win-win. We can generate some income and deliver much more holistic and beneficial outcomes to the estate and to society and wildlife and nature.”
Benefits from integrated land use
“Everything that Dee is doing aligns very much with what we believe in,” says James.
“The fact that there is still that sporting element to the estate is important to us because we want to demonstrate how well mixed land use can work.”
“We've always been able to see the huge benefits that come from integrated land use and how all of these things can work together,” says Nikki.
“We've always been able to see the huge benefits that come from integrated land use.”
“Being able to overlay livestock onto that and see the co-benefits is really important and I think it also becomes relevant for other estates.
“You can't influence other landowners if they can't recognise any of themselves in what you’re doing. Whereas if you can show you've got farming, you've got stalking and you've got sporting interests, then you're more able to influence change.
“You're not attaching yourself to a particular label, like rewilding, which it can be difficult for other landowners to get on board with.”
Producing high quality beef
Before Nikki and James came to Rottal, all of the cattle on the farm were set-stocked.
They brought their own herd of around 60 breeding cows, which are predominantly Aberdeen Angus, alongside some Shetland cattle.
Nikki says the mob grazing system gives paddocks enough rest to regenerate and regrow, while also fostering soil biology and increasing biodiversity and providing a habitat for wildlife.
“The livestock are concentrated in particular areas and then they're moved frequently, and that means that everywhere else is getting the opportunity to rest,” she says.
“It’s all about supercharging natural processes and cycles to help create more balance and more opportunity for resilient landscapes.”
“So plants can go to flower and seed and wildlife can live unimpeded by livestock. There's a lot of opportunity for ecosystem processes to take place away from the livestock.
“The cow is the best compost maker you can have, so as we put grass into one end we get plant-available nutrients out of the other and it goes straight into the ground to enable nutrient cycling.
“It’s all about supercharging natural processes and cycles to help create more balance and more opportunity for resilient landscapes.”
James and Nikki sell meat directly via their website www.grampiangraziers.co.uk
They also sell store cattle to another Pasture for Life Certified farmer in Scotland for finishing.
In addition, they sell breeding stock and finished animals direct to abattoirs.
Soil carbon baselining from Regenerate Outcomes
Joining Regenerate Outcomes gave Nikki and James the opportunity to baseline soil carbon stocks at the beginning of their work at Rottal so they could get a true reflection of the benefits of their management over time.
“The ability to get the soil carbon baseline is really attractive,” says Nikki.
“We were also interested in the commitment from Regenerate Outcomes to facilitating payments from carbon credits for us.
Rottal Estate
“Farms that go through a process of change often say the thing that they regret the most is not baselining sooner and not collecting more data. It can also be difficult to cover the cost of that if you do it individually. Being part of a scheme which facilitates that is a massive game-changer.
“The programme allows us to be rewarded for making those improvements and works alongside Rottal’s commitment to delivering the ecosystem services, which it does already.
Soil health mentoring
“We had our first visit from our mentor, Stuart Johnson, and it was brilliant.
“It is really important to have somebody who can act as a critical friend. We have done a lot of learning over the years but that doesn’t mean we can’t learn more and adapt.
“Having those conversations with Stu is really important and also having accountability to someone to follow through on ideas and advice.”
Earning extra income from soil carbon credits
“Regenerate Outcomes have a clear route to market for the carbon credits and it is much easier to work with someone like that,” says Dee.
“You are not forward selling and so there is not really any risk associated with it. If we increase the carbon in our soils then there will be a payment for that.”
“Farms that go through a process of change often say the thing that they regret the most is not baselining sooner and not collecting more data.”
“Ultimately we want to produce quality beef, increase biodiversity and build healthier soils on this estate,” says Nikki.
“Regenerate Outcomes gives us the opportunity to enable that through someone paying for it. Our job is just to do the best we can for our ecosystems and our land.
“Ultimately it is another diversification and a way of delivering public goods and being rewarded for that, in addition to being able to sell really nutritious food and good breeding stock.”
Regenerate Outcomes works with
farmers to grow profits
We provide one-to-one mentoring to help you cut costs and improve crop and livestock performance.
At the same time, we baseline and measure soil carbon at no upfront cost to generate carbon credits which you can retain or sell for additional income.
Find out more by downloading our Programme Handbook.