Soil & Sustainability: Schotse Hooglanders

What’s not to love about shaggy, horned cows? This is how we found schotsehooglanders.nl, but then we stayed for the philosophy. This is a conversation about how to feed the future — with food that actually means something. If you’d told me in my vegan years that the future of food might just be partial to boggy pastures, I’d have smiled and nodded politely. But then a horticulture degree and regenerative agriculture classes led me to meeting Jelwin: the farmer behind this story.

In the meadows and marshlands of the Netherlands, this farmer is doing more than just raising Highland cattle. He’s restoring ecosystems, redefining animal care, and building a food system where technology and tradition hold hands — not swords. This is more than ranching. It is managing a regenerative system in action.

Highland Cows, More Than a Pretty Face

Let’s start with the cows — Highland cattle. These aren’t your average cows. Originating from the rugged Scottish Highlands, they’re a hardy breed designed to thrive in places most modern livestock wouldn’t moo at. Jelwin’s herd gives his herd the good life. No protein pellets. No “finishing.” Just open space, clean water, and year-round access to the kind of rough, fibrous forage that modern agriculture tends to dismiss.

He’s not forcing nature to comply. He works with it, not against it.

His animals roam year-round — through wetlands, meadows, and rich soil — in between trees that would challenge tractors but welcome hooves. And in doing so, they’re not just sustaining themselves. They’re healing the land.

If you’ve ever wondered what “regenerative agriculture” looks like, here it is: herds of cattle grazing, their hooves gently disturbing the soil surface, their manure feeding microbial life, their presence encouraging biodiversity. There is no need for fertilizer, pesticides or micro-managed monocrops.The cows do all the work. And that’s not just poetic — they increase soil carbon, improve water retention, and climate resilient ecosystems.

Let’s dig a little deeper. Soil is alive, and when you treat it well, it gives back. Because his system avoids synthetic inputs and tillage, the soil is abundant with life. Earthworms. Fungi. Bacteria with Latin names I won’t bore you with. This does more than grow good grass. Plant roots store carbon. Retain water. Resist drought. As climate narratives grow more anxious, Jelwin’s practices give hope for a better tomorrow.

These cattle are ecosystem engineers. And in a world where biodiversity loss and topsoil erosion are rising like sourdough starters in July, we need their help. His animals more than just “welfare-certified” — they’re actually well. And we agree. If we’re going to consume animal products, we better damn well make sure that animal lived a life worth living.

Tradition & Technology: Not Enemies; Partners!

Farming in modern society is so much more than pitchforks and folklore. Jelwin is embracing modern tools to enable true autonomy. By cutting out middlemen and building digital infrastructure, he’s part of developing food sovereignty. Local but not limited. Tech-forward but soul-first. This model? It’s scalable and shareable. It’s the antidote to a system where food travels thousands of kilometers to reach shelves wrapped in lies and plastic.

What if food didn’t have to pass through factories and freight containers before reaching your kitchen? What if it could come straight from pasture to plate?

Spoiler alert: it can. It does. You’re eating it.

From Pasture to Plate

At his farm, Highland cattle graze native grasses the way their ancestors did: slowly, seasonally, and with the kind of dignity that’s hard to picture when staring at shrink-wrapped supermarket trays. These cattle aren’t fed grain. They don’t fatten up in feedlots. They exist in symbiosis with the soil, converting roughage into rich nourishment the way ruminants have always done. And when their time comes, the entire animal is honored — nothing wasted. Especially not the fat.

Which brings us to our favorite five-letter word: tallow.

Real fat — the kind rendered from grass-fed animals living the good life — is one of the most nutrient-dense substances on earth. Tallow is rich in fat-soluble vitamins A, D, E, and K2, all of which are crucial for everything from cellular health to hormonal balance to the kind of skin glow that no serum can fake. 

If there was one thing this dialogue hammered home, it’s that regenerative agriculture isn’t some eco-marketing gimmick. It’s just how food used to work — and how it can again. Highland cattle, when properly grazed, restore land. Their hooves aerate the soil. Their manure feeds microbial life. Their grazing patterns encourage biodiversity. It's the circle of life, folks.

And when we render suet into tallow, when we season cracklings we’re not just making snacks. We’re restoring broken links between animal, soil, and self. You don’t need a PhD in soil science to understand that. 

Biodiversity, One Hoof at a Time

When you reach for your next meal, ask yourself: Does it honor the animal? The soil? The story? Or does it just sell a trend?

We go forward by going back. To food systems built on care instead of convenience. To technology that empowers, not obscures.

And to fat — glorious, golden, grass-fed fat.

At Elixir, we choose quality — every time. Our tallow is slow-rendered from Dutch Highland suet. Because fat isn’t just fuel. It’s history. It’s heritage. And frankly? It’s delicious.