Farmers who graze sheep under solar panels say it improves productivity. So why don’t we do it more?

A solar farm where sheep grazier Tom Warren runs sheep outside Dubbo, New South Wales. Photograph: Gerard Wood

As a flock of about 2,000 sheep graze between rows of solar panels, grazier Tony Inder wonders what all the fuss is about. “I’m not going to suggest it’s everyone’s cup of tea,” he says. “But as far as sheep grazing goes, solar is really good.”

Inder is talking about concerns over the encroachment of prime agricultural land by ever-expanding solar and windfarms, a well-trodden talking point for the loudest opponents to Australia’s energy transition.