Meat Naturally Pty

Meat Naturally Pty was created in 2016 to provide grazing planning, herder training, livestock production and market access support to reverse degradation in Africa’s communal lands. The business provides technical support and innovative market access as incentives to conservation agreements. Through facilitating and activating market demand for socially and environmentally responsible red meat, Meat Naturally can reward livestock management practices that generate productive, resilient rangeland ecosystems. Since 2016, Meat Naturally has helped communal farmers engaged in conservation agreements earn a living from livestock sales and supported regenerative grazing management on >320,000 ha of natural rangelands. We are a social enterprise constituted under South African law as a commercial business held by the Meat Naturally Pty Shareholders Trust. The Trust shareholding interests are majority (60%) owned by communal farmers who sell through it. The Trust currently represents over 1600 farmers in South Africa’s communal lands, but all farmers who receive market access support are automatically included in the business shareholding via the Trust. The remaining 40% shareholding is with Conservation South Africa. This structure ensures the longevity of the conservation commitments, supported by a sustainable business vehicle, while helping local farmers gain shareholding into the formal private sector. Meat Naturally partners with NGOs to offer rural farmers formal training on regenerative grazing techniques, rangeland restoration practices, cattle management, stock theft patrol, and predator control. We also support NGO economic goals by organizing mobile auctions and abattoirs to provide small-scale famers with the opportunity to reach new markets. In exchange for training, equipment and market access, farmers commit to preserving rangelands and providing quality meat products that are sustainably produced.