The organic principle of ecology proposes that organic production should be based on ecological processes, fitting with natural cycles and being adapted to local conditions, ecology, culture and scale. Inputs should be reduced to reused, recycled and conserved natural resources that maintain and improve environmental quality (IFOAM, 2005). For organic dairy farms, this means that the nourishment and nutritional well-being of the animals should rely on feed produced from living soil occurring within the farm ecosystem, with nutrients recycled within closed cycles. On close examination, many of our organic dairy farms appear removed from that particular aspirational pathway in that they are often based on adaptations of conventional and intensive models of production, albeit with legislative limits imposed on the percentage of concentrate feeds in the diet. For example, in England during 2020–21, more than half of the variable costs associated with the production of organic milk were attributed to purchased concentrate feeds (Scott, 2023).