Pasco and Huánuco begin implementation of good cattle ranching practices looking for sustainability

In Pasco and Huánuco, cattle ranching is one of the main economic activities, generating around 15% of economic income (BCR, 2022). However, in the last 10 years, both regions have lost more than 110,000 hectares due to agricultural activities according to Geobosques' land use analysis and its change in 2022. 

In response to this challenge, WWF Peru expanded its experience in regenerative cattle ranching to Codo de Pozuzo and Huánuco, within the Alliance for Regenerative Cattle Ranching in the Peruvian Amazon (AGRAP) framework. This program seeks to strengthen the technical capacities of more than 50 cattle-ranching families in good agroecological practices to improve their livelihoods by increasing their productivity and generating commitments to stop burning, forest clearing and promote ecosystem restoration, with an emphasis on gender equity and generational transition through the programs Mujer Ganadera (Women Ranchers) and Ganaderos del Futuro (Ranchers of the Future).

"Before I didn't know the science behind good livestock practices, here in my community we used to do cattle rotation by instinct and we didn't see results in soil recovery. The fact that we are being empowered makes us responsible for changing our way of doing things and improving our environment, I am already on my third hectare implementing regenerative livestock practices and the changes in the pasture are visible in a few days, it motivates me to keep my commitment", says Edwin Baumman, participating cattle rancher from Codo de Pozuzo.

In addition, as part of the efforts to promote sustainable cattle ranching and in co-organization with the Amazon Regional Commonwealth (MRA), the General Directorate of Cattle Development of the Ministry of Agrarian Development and Irrigation - MIDAGRI and the Regional Government of Huanuco, public employees have been trained to formulate public investment projects that allow the development of sustainable cattle ranching in the Amazon. As a result of this approach, WWF Peru, in coordination with the MRA, has been collaborating on a public investment project formulation profile with this perspective.

"The responsibility of the public sector employees and experts is to design, analyze, and supervise public investment projects. It is essential to support them with the necessary resources to develop national, regional, and local environmental initiatives that integrate the regenerative cattle ranching approach and its sustainable production with low emissions," says Priscila Pasco, Agroecology Officer at WWF Peru. 

Regenerative cattle ranching is a new methodology that began to be implemented four years ago in Madre de Dios. Now, it is applied in Pasco and Huánuco. The methodology improves the quality and sustainability of this activity by promoting the well-being of the local producer and the production chain.