Making goatmeat an Aussie staple

A goal to see goatmeat become a staple food in the meal plans of Australian consumers is the focus of the hosts of a recent goat production field day, supported by MLA.

The production field day was designed to provide information for those interested in going into  goats as well as producers already in the industry, and to support producers to implement best practice and ultimately develop a thriving, professional industry.

Appetite for information

Award-winning NSW goat producers, Jo and Craig Stewart, who produce their own paddock-to-plate branded goatmeat under their brand The Gourmet Goat Lady, hosted the inaugural field day in April at their property, ‘Buena Vista’, Collie.

The field day attracted more than 50 attendees from 20 businesses, including producers and livestock agents, who travelled from throughout NSW and as far afield as Queensland and the Victorian border.

The program featured presentations from industry experts on a range of topics, including NSW DPI Livestock Research Officer, Dr Gordon Refshauge, who discussed the findings of a recent research project funded by MLA, examining the prevalence, cause and cost of kid loss in the Australian goatmeat industry.

Other presenters included:

• NSW DPI’s Trudie Atkinson on data-driven decision making
• Sue Street and Sarah Mahar from Local Land Services discussing managing doe nutrition, goat health and biosecurity on-farm
• Colin Ramsay, Dudauman Park Boer Goat Stud, on using KIDPLAN to improve goat genetics
• livestock agent, Joe Portelli, PT Lord Dakin and Associate discussing goat marketing.

Craig and Jo provided an overview of their visual assessment techniques including a hands-on condition scoring exercise and a demonstration of the Te Pari autodrafting system they have been using for the past five years to improve on-farm efficiencies and data collection.

It was the first time Craig and Jo had hosted a field day, and said there was a strong appetite for information about all aspects of the industry.

“We hosted the event for the benefit of the industry. It’s a fledgeling industry and it’s got amazing potential, especially if we all work together,” Jo said.

“The aim was to find out where people were at with their goat enterprises and what they wanted to get out of the day.

“We’re mindful everyone is at different stages and we wanted to provide them with really comprehensive information they could take home and use in their enterprises, and also direct them to resources.

“We’d like to see the industry progress so farmed goatmeat sits alongside lamb, and is on same trajectory as it, so Australian consumers will include goatmeat in their weekly meal plans. As I like to say, there’s more to goatmeat than curry.

“My take away message is we can all learn from each other and help one another as you go along.

“We’re always happy to help people in the industry any way we can, and we would really like to connect with other producers.”

Attendees at the field day got to taste The Gourmet Goat Lady product, with gourmet goat pies amongst the fare served on the day.

Kicking goals

Jo and Craig first started in the goat industry in 2008, and today run about 2,500 grassfed Boer goats, as well as Hereford cattle and cropping operations.

“The target weights for our wethers and cull does for processing are 22–24kg, aged four to 12 months,” Jo said.

“We predominantly sell whole carcases, supplying butchers, provedores and restaurants.

“We also produce capretto when seasonal conditions allow. This is a specialty line of milk-fed goats with a dressed weight between 8–10kg. We have a constant enquiry throughout the year for capretto.”

The Gourmet Goat Lady brand has won many awards, including Sydney Royal Fine Food Show medals, Australian Food Awards and this year, The Gourmet Goat Lady was named a NSW state winner in the delicious. Harvey Norman Produce Awards.

Besides goatmeat, Jo and Craig have been involved in an MLA goat levy-funded project that explored the development of goat beauty creams made from goat bone broth and tallow.