Stanford study: reducing grazing and adding livestock feed could boost soil carbon storage but regional supply chains matter

A new Stanford-led study published in Science finds that reducing overgrazing on rangelands and supplementing livestock diets with feed could allow soils to store billions more tons of carbon each year. Rangelands cover about half of Earth's surface and support 500 million people. The research shows that preventing overgrazing boosts plant growth and carbon capture, but the climate benefits depend heavily on where supplemental feed comes from and how it is produced. The study accounts for feed supply chains, international trade, livestock emissions, and land-use changes from growing feed crops like corn and soybeans. It found that altering grazing could sequester an additional 2.2 billion tons of carbon annually, but net climate gains shrink when supply chain emissions are included. Regional variation is significant, meaning blanket grazing policies could backfire in some areas.