While some critics argue that large-scale solar farms can displace valuable farmland in the United States, projects across the country show that agriculture and clean energy don't have to be mutually exclusive.
According to ABC News, a central Tennessee ranch offers one example of how solar panels and lush pastures can coexist.
At a 40-acre site outside Nashville, cows are grazing directly beneath solar arrays in a setup known as agrivoltaics — combining agriculture and solar energy.
Silicon Ranch unveiled the project in Christiana, Tennessee, where cattle share land with a working solar farm. Instead of gravel or bare ground under the panels, the site is covered in pasture, and a herd of cows and calves rotates through portions every few days.
The setup stands out because most agrivoltaics projects have focused on crops or sheep rather than cattle. Larger animals create bigger engineering challenges, since solar panels often tilt steeply and leave too little clearance underneath for taller creatures.
To address that, Silicon Ranch increased the panel height and created software that lets workers shift them closer to horizontal while cattle are grazing, according to ABC News.
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The farm produces about 5 megawatts of electricity for Middle Tennessee Electric. Company officials said the goal is to prove that the model can scale and help meet rising power demands.
This kind of dual-use approach could help solve two challenges at once: the need for more affordable electricity and the need to keep farmers on their land.
Ethan Winter of American Farmland Trust told ABC that leasing farmland for solar can bring in around $1,000 per acre, roughly 10 times what some farmers have typically earned.
That extra income can help farm families pay off debts, diversify operations, and avoid selling land under trying economic and climate conditions. For communities, these projects can improve access to clean energy while sustaining local economies and food systems.
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There are potential health and climate benefits as well. Anna Clare Monlezun, who is working on the Tennessee project, told ABC that pastures beneath solar panels may hold more moisture and better withstand drought. Animals can also benefit from the added shade, which may ease heat strain and, relatedly, cut water use.
As of this year, Silicon Ranch expects to have almost 15,000 acres of pastures being grazed by various animals, including cows and sheep.
If this Tennessee project is successful, it could open the door to more dual-use efforts that support both energy reliability and agriculture.
"There are more win-wins than trade-offs," Monlezun told ABC.
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