Peter Danks is probably Bavaria’s most famous cowherd. He believes in participatory democracy: every morning,he lets the cows decide whether to go out to pasture or remain in their stalls. He watches over the cattle of seven different farmers.Today there are more cattle in Bavaria’s mountains than at any time in the last 20 years. Sending their cows into the mountains is profitable for farmers. Last year,the European Union and the Agriculture Ministry began paying a pasturage premium: 30 euros per cow that spends at least three months on a mountain meadow.