Carl Helander
Carl is investigating how extending the time ewes spend outdoors in late fall and early spring affects animal health, animal welfare, and profitability in sheep production.
Sheep farming has been a central part of my life since childhood. I grew up on a farm with sheep, cattle and grassland, and developed an early interest in sheep breeding and management. I trained as an agronomist and completed my PhD at SLU in 2014, focusing on forage feeding in lamb production.
My professional background combines research with practical farming. In 2016, I moved into full-time sheep farming, developing my own flock on a larger scale. I returned to SLU in Skara in 2024, bringing valuable experience of the everyday decisions and challenges involved in running a sheep enterprise.
Within SustAinimal, my research examines how keeping ewes outdoors for longer in late autumn and early spring affects animal health, welfare and farm profitability. The aim is to provide scientific evidence to inform Swedish requirements for outdoor sheep management.
What attracted me to this work was the opportunity to investigate questions that matter directly to sheep farmers. Having worked both as a researcher and as a farmer, I want to help develop knowledge that is scientifically sound and useful in practice.
Through SustAinimal, I look forward to exchanging ideas with researchers and people across the agricultural sector. I hope these collaborations will help place our findings in a wider context, connecting animal welfare and farm profitability with the role of grazing livestock in sustainable food production.
For me, this work matters because the future of Swedish sheep farming depends on both healthy animals and viable farm businesses. Housing costs can limit opportunities to develop production, while grazing sheep help maintain valuable pastures and biodiversity. We need a better understanding of when extended outdoor management can work well, and what its limitations are.
My motivation is rooted in a lifelong interest in sheep and a desire to improve conditions for both animals and the people who care for them. I want my research to help farmers make informed decisions and build businesses that they can sustain over time.