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East battles west over goat meatBy Doug Rich
It is not north versus south but east versus west in the meat goat business this year. The ethnic population of the East Coast has caught up with the ethnic population on the West Coast. That's a good thing for Kansas producers like Cory Scott. "This year we are seeing a battle in the goat market between the east and west coasts," Scott said. "This makes for a very good market. This spring I sold goats higher than I ever have and I sold a month too early." Scott said goat meat sold for as much as $1.50 a pound this spring when, only two years ago, it were selling for 85 cents a pound. The growing ethnic population in the U. S. is a big reason for the improved market price for goat meat. Population According to a technical paper published by the Tuskegee University in 2007, the Hispanic population in this country will reach 100 million by the year 2050. That will be 25 percent of the total U.S. population. The 2000 U.S. Census stated that the foreign-born population in the U.S. has grown from 19.8 million to 31.1 million since 1990. That is a 57 percent increase in a population with a strong preference for goat meat. "These people eat goat meat like we eat hamburger," Scott said Scott, who is president of the Kansas Meat Goat Association, has been raising meat goats in eastern Kansas for five years. "We started out with 50 nannies. Within two months, we had 100 and then we just kept on going," Scott said. Today he manages about 300 nanny goats on rented and owned land and keeps about 200 to 300 goats in feeding pens on his farm. This year, he had trouble keeping his feeding pens full because feeder goats were slaughtered to keep up with the demand for goat meat. Typically, meat goats are ready for slaughter between 65 and 80 pounds live weight. According to USDA, the average weight for goats slaughtered at federally inspected plants was 62 pounds with an average carcass weight of 32.4 pounds. To meet the demand, a lot of 50-pound feeder goats became butcher goats this year. "There were not enough 70 pound goats and it just took the feeder goat market out this spring," Scott said. Numbers The number of farms with goats in Kansas is growing steadily but Scott expects the number of animals per farm to grow a lot more. He said there has probably been a 50 percent increase in the herd size in Kansas in the last four to five years. "A producer may have had five nannies just a few years ago; now he may have 20 nannies," Scott said. In 2006 the U.S. Department of Agriculture's National Agricultural Statistics Service reported there were almost 3 million head of goats in the U.S. More than 82 percent of those were meat goats. Several states showed an increase in numbers. Missouri, for example, had an increase of 166 percent from 1985 to 2006. Nearly 44 percent of all the goats in the U.S. are in Texas. Scott was running a Schwan's route when he decided to start raising goats part-time. He planned to co-mingle cows and goats but the goats were making more money. He eventually quit his off-farm job and started working with meat goats full-time. "I could not handle both and I enjoy this a lot more," Scott said. Most years Scott will sell 30 to 40 goats a month off the farm and haul 600 to 700 to one of the regional markets in Kansas. Scott said there are several good goat and lamb markets in Kansas now but he hauls most of his to Clay Center. Demand The demand varies from month to month. Easter, July 4 and Muslim holidays like Aideh Ghorban or Aideh Fatre create demand for goat meat. Scott said sometimes the individual purchase just depends on how big the birthday party or wedding is going to be. Many ethnic groups like to purchase live animals so they can process it according to their religious or cultural standards. Scott said sometimes it is more cultural than religious. He has had customers with the same religious background but the way they processed the meat was totally different. "I think it can vary from village to village," Scott said. "We sold probably 30 percent of our kid crop right off the farm to individuals last year and we will gear up more for that this year," Scott said. Scott said if we start selling on a carcass weight basis, the market for higher quality goats will go up. Right now, people are just buying a goat. USDA statistics show that 750,000 goats were slaughtered in state and federally inspected plants in 2006. That was more than double the number slaughtered in 1990. Numbers are not available for on-farm slaughter. Scott runs Boer, Boer-Spanish cross, Kiko, and Savanna nannies. He said the Savanna goats are from Africa and are a lot like Boer goats, as far as body conformation, but they are a little bit more parasite resistant. He uses all Boer billy goats on his nannies for the simple fact that they really put the meat on the kids. "If we kid in October, we can have three kid crops in 14 months," Scott said. "It is possible to have two kid crops in a year since goats have a five month gestation period and nannies cycle every 21 days." Scott said we are seeing the potential for meat goats in the U.S. this year. Producers can run a low input operation and still raise a good marketable animal in a short period of time. "That is good for the cash flow statement," Scott said. "The margin is what we are about in the livestock business. I never would have guessed it could be this profitable." Doug Rich can be reached by phone at 785-749-5304 or by e-mail at richhpj@aol.com. 9/15/08 Date: 9/10/08
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