Hillview Farm began in Ellington in 2014, built on a lifelong passion for animal agriculture. Sheep proved to be the most sustainable livestock we raised, but growing the operation meant finding affordable pasture, and that proved to be the central challenge. We quickly outgrew the resources we had to make our farm profitable. Sheep, being a ruminant; thrive on pasture as they were born to graze all day and convert that grass into energy – not be fed grain and hay inside barns or on dry lots. Finding access to affordable pasture was cost prohibitive. Larger farms typically control the available farmland, and pastures we could access were often overgrown and in poor condition. Small farms simply cannot compete with larger entities. Hillview Farm sheep grazing at a CT solar installation Like many small farmers in this state, we spent nearly as much time worrying about margins as we did caring for our flock. Without access to pasture it made no sense to keep the flock, let alone expand. Even though demand for lamb and breeding stock continued, we couldn’t keep absorbing costs of production and expansion. That started to change when we began working with solar developers to graze our sheep on land hosting photovoltaic arrays. Today, more than a decade into running Hillview Farm, our operation has grown dramatically, from starting out with just shy of a dozen sheep to the more than 130 in our flock today and plans to expand to over 300 head seasonally. This arrangement has proven valuable not just for us, but for Connecticut agriculture as a whole. How solar grazing works, and why it works well The concept is straightforward. Ground-mounted solar panels require vegetation management beneath and between them. Uncontrolled grass and brush can shade panels, reduce efficiency, and increase maintenance costs. Traditionally, developers hired mowing crews, which is both expensive and pollution-generating. Flying rocks and debris can also crack panels, creating costly damage. Sheep solve many of these issues. A well-managed flock keeps vegetation trimmed naturally, with minimal machinery, without pollution, and without the risk of damaged panels. The sheep graze, preferring the shaded panels which traditionally are the most difficult area to manage vegetation; the developer gets reliable, low-cost vegetation management; and we receive a per-acre fee for the service on top of what we earn from our animals, reinvested each year in equipment and improved management. There are benefits for the sheep too. The shade provided by solar panels reduces heat stress on the flock during summer months, which supports better weight gain and animal welfare. Forage quality under the panels is often superior to open-field forage, with research showing significantly higher protein content in grass grown beneath arrays. Each site has a forage blend planted that is specifically selected for its nutritional value, added plant species that also support pollinators and improve soil structure. Our animals are thriving, and Hillview Farm is more financially stable than it has ever been. The partnership with landowners matters Some of the solar sites we work on are leased by developers from farm families who have worked the land for generations. These are landowners who embraced solar because they needed economic breathing room.  A 25- or 30-year solar lease provides reliable income during a period when commodity prices are volatile and input costs keep rising. But many of these families want to know that their land is still producing something and is still connected to agriculture. Our presence on these properties gives them that. When a landowner sees our flock grazing where their grandparents once hayed, that means something. It is not a compromise. It is a continuation. We take seriously the responsibility of being good stewards on those sites, and the landowners we work with appreciate knowing that the land is not simply sitting under panels collecting dust. The land comes back healthier People should understand what happens to farmland at the end of a solar project. Most arrays have a useful life of 25 to 30 years, after which the land is returned. The question is: returned to what condition? Research conducted at commercial solar sites across the Northeast found that grazed solar sites showed significantly higher soil organic matter, soil protein, and active carbon than non-grazed sites. Sheep improve soil through natural fertilization and rotational grazing practices. When these projects conclude, land that has been carefully grazed throughout the solar lease should be well-positioned to support row crops, hay production, or other agricultural uses, potentially in better condition than when the panels went in. Connecticut-specific data remains limited, which is why the agrivoltaics study now mandated by state law matters so much. House Bill 5340, passed by the legislature this spring, includes an agrivoltaics feasibility study to be completed by January 1, 2027. How many acres, how many farmers, what the economic impact looks like: none of that exists in organized form for Connecticut yet. The study aims to change that, and we are grateful that state leaders are investing the time to better understand this growing dimension of Connecticut agriculture. Agriculture does not look the same as it did 50 years ago, and it should not have to. Embracing new models, including grazing sheep under solar panels, does not diminish farming, it sustains it. Our thriving flock, and the growth of Hillview Farm, are proof of that. Natalie Cohen is the owner of Hillview Farm in Ellington.   ...read more read less