Benchmarks of Victorian commercial goat meat enterprises

The Australian goat meat industry has mostly processed feral goats for export. As goat meat markets mature there will be an increased demand for farmed goats to meet supply, especially into niche markets. Production benchmarking showed that Victorian commercial goat meat producers are located generally in areas with <500 mm rainfall, usually in conjunction with other livestock and cropping enterprises. On average, 67% of farm area, equal to 701 ha (range 55 – 4400 ha) was allocated to the goat enterprise. Commercial producers used Boer bucks, at an average mating rate of 2.2%, over Boer X or feral X does. Weaning rates averaged 99% (range 51 - 165%). There was a large range in husbandry ($0 - $3.07) and supplementary feeding ($6.75 - $9.60) expenditure. Fifty percent of producers indicated that they carried out regular faecal egg counts to assess worm burdens. Seasonal supply patterns showed that producers were supplying Christmas and Easter markets with a live weight range of 12 - 40 kg and an overall average live weight of 26 kg. The issues of concern identified by commercial growers were: internal parasitism, doe fertility, kid predation, kid growth rates, Johnes disease, and fencing security. This study indicated that there is considerable scope to improve the productivity of the Victorian commercial goat meat industry. Most producers supply smaller carcases on a strong seasonal basis. This supply pattern inhibits industry development.

A supply chain approach to meat goat industry development

The Victorian goat meat industry is a significant contributor to export earnings, which is derived largely from the harvest of feral goats. The potential for exports of farmed goat meat into Asian product markets is being developed in a supply chain approach with producers, processors, exporters and Asian importers. Producers have been networked in four locations to improve supply capability and participate in production and economic benchmarking. In the absence of an existing market for premium farmed goat meat, a larger group of producers are cooperating with a marketer to develop a niche market in the Asian food service sector. This presents a challenge to the group in developing commercial relationships and playing a role in the marketing of their goat meat.