Marketing Options for Goats

SUSAN SCHOENIAN (Shāy nē ŭn)Sheep & Goat Specialist

Western Maryland Research & Education Centersschoen@umd.edu – www.sheepandgoat.com

Goat marketing realities

• Low per capita consumption of meat.

• Specialized demand, mostly “ethnic,” but is growing.

• Poor infrastructure, but is improving.

• High processing costs – low yielding animal.

• Laws regulating goat slaughter are extensive, complicated, and open to interpretation.

Today’s topics

• Ethnic markets• Goat slaughter options

• Grading• Marketing options

What is an ethnic market?

• An ethnic market is a group of consumers that share a common cultural background: race, color, national origin, religion or language.

• There are many different “ethnic” markets for goats and goat meat.

North Carolina Maryland USAPopulation (2012 est) 9,752,073 5,884,563 313,914,040

% White, Non-Hispanic 71.9 60.8 77.9

% Hispanic/Latino 8.7 8.7 16.9

% Black/African-American 22.0 30.9 13.1

% Asian 2.5 6.0 5.1

% American Indian 1.5 0.5 1.2

% foreign born 7.4 13.5 12.8

Per capita income $25,256 $35,751 $27,915

Median household income $46,291 $72,419 $52,762

U.S. Census: http://quickfacts.census.gov/qfd/index.html

Find out where mosques are: http://islamicvalley.com

Population Demographics

Tips for marketing to ethnic markets

• Identify target market(s)• Learn their customs• Know their holidays• Find a way to connect

with your potential consumers.

• Produce the kind(s) of goats they want and at the time of year they want them . . . and do it for a profit.

Ethnic Calendar 2013-2017Holiday 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017Eid uh-AdhaFestival of the Sacrifice

Oct 15-18 Oct 4-7 Sept 23-27 Sept 11-14 Sept 1-4

Islamic New Year Nov 4 Oct 25 Oct 14 Oct 2 Sept 21-22Prophet’s birthday Jan 24 Jan 13 Dec 23 Dec 14 Dec1Start of Ramadan July 9 June 28 June 18 June 6 May 27Eid ul-FitrFestival of Fast-breaking

Aug 8-11 July 29-31 July 18-21 July 7-9 June 26-28

Passover Mar 26-27 Mar 15-22 April 4-11 April 23-30 April 11-18Rosh Hashanah Sept 5-6 Sept 24-25 Sept 4-5 Oct 3-4 Sept 21-22Chanukah Nov 28-Dec 5 Dec 17-24 Dec 7-14 Dec 25-Jan1 Dec 13-20Easter Mar 31 April 20 April 5 Mar 27 April 16Orthodox Easter May 5 April 20 April 12 May 1 April 16Christmas Dec 25 Dec 25 Dec 25 Dec 25 Dec 25Orthodox Christmas Jan 7 Jan 7 Jan 7 Jan 7 Jan 7Chinese New Year Feb 10 Jan 31 Feb 19 Feb 8 Jan 28

Source: http://www.interfaithcalendar.org

Slaughter options for goatsInspection levels

1. Federal (USDA)2. State

3. Local (custom-exempt)4. On-farm

(owner vs. customer)

Federally-inspected (USDA) slaughter

• Most regulated.

• Must have HACCP plan.

• Includes pre and post-mortem inspection of animal.

• Additional requirements for labeling, further processing, transporting, and storing of meat.

• Can sell properly labeled goat meat and meat products to anyone.

State-inspected slaughter• Collaborative effort between state

and federal government.

• State regulations must be “at least equal to” federal regulations.

• Sales of state-inspected meat usually limited to the state in which the meat was inspected.

• 27 states still have state meat inspection programs.

• Even without state meat inspection, states can make laws more restrictive than USDA (federal regulations0.

With WithoutAlabamaArizonaDelawareGeorgiaIllinoisIndianaIowaKansasLouisianaMaineMinnesotaMississippiMissouriMontana

North CarolinaNorth DakotaOhioOklahomaSouth CarolinaSouth DakotaTexasUtahVermontVirginiaWest VirginiaWisconsinWyoming

AlaskaArkansasCaliforniaColoradoConnecticutFloridaHawaiiIdahoKentuckyMarylandMassachusettsMichigan

NebraskaNevadaNew HampshireNew JerseyNew MexicoNew YorkOregonPennsylvaniaRhode IslandSouth DakotaTennessee Washington

Custom-exempt slaughter• Slaughter facility is inspected, but

slaughter is exempt from pre- and post-mortem inspection of animal.

• Restricted to owner of animal1. Raises it2. Purchases it for slaughter.

• Carcass and meat stamped “not for resale” and returned to owner for consumption by owner, family, and unpaid guests and employees.

On-farm slaughterBy person who raised animal• Permitted by USDA• Consumption of meat limited to

farmer, family, and nonpaying guests and employees.

By person who purchases animal• Not prohibited by federal

regulations, but often prohibited by local or state regulations (if seller provides site for slaughter).

• In states where it is legal, consumption of meat is limited to owner, family, and non-paying guests and employees.

Ethnic, religious, and ritual slaughter

1. Halal - Muslim2. Kosher - Jewish3. Other

• Religious slaughter is exempt from humane slaughter laws

• Animal is not usually stunned; however, it should be properly restrained for slaughter.

• Religious slaughter is usually certified by a third party organization.

• Can be difficult to find slaughterhouses that will perform religious or specialized slaughter.

Grading• Putting like animals together.

• Allows animals to be comingled at market place.

• Facilitates marketing by providing a means by which livestock and carcasses can be uniformly described and traded.

• Prices can be reported and compared on the basis of grade and other descriptors (weight, age, and sex).

• A method of determiningmarket readiness, regardless of marketing program.

USDA Goat Gradesindependent of breed, age, size, and fat cover (?)

Selection 1• Superior

meat-type conformation

Selection 2

• Average muscling

Selection 3• Inferior

meat-type conformation

• Learn how to read a market report.

• If possible, visit market(s) to determine accuracy of market reporting.

• Use market reports to determine what your animals are worth.

Grades can have a large influence on prices.

11-Mar 25-Mar 8-Apr 22-Apr 6-May 20-May 3-Jun 17-Jun 1-Jul 15-Jul 29-Jul 12-Aug $40

$60

$80

$100

$120

$140

$160

$180

$200

60-80 lb. kids, price per head (weighted average) - New Holland, PA

Selection 1 Selection 2 Selection 3

WHOLESALE(commodity)

Local sale barnWeekly sale

Special sale

Graded sale

Terminal sale

MIDDLEMAN

Broker, Dealer

AbattoirLive price

Carcass price

Co-op

Live market

Direct marketer

RETAIL(Direct to

consumer)On-farm

Freezer trade

Ethnic markets

Marketing options for live goats

Convenience

Control

WHOLESALE(whole carcass)

Consumer

Restaurant

Retail store

RETAIL(meat, cuts)

Consumer

Farm store

Farmer’s market

CSA (delivery)

Food Service

Internet

Restaurant

Retail store

Marketing options for goat meat

IncomeCostsLabor

Auctions (sale barns, stockyards)local, weekly, special, holiday, graded, holiday, regional, terminal

PROS• Price discovery

Competition• Prompt, guaranteed

payment• Unbiased grading• Certified weights• Easy• Convenient• Low labor

CONS• Price taker: don’t know

price ahead of time• Price volatility• Selling fees: commission,

yardage, insurance, feed• Stressful to animals• Distance to some auctions

Middlemandealer, broker, buyer, abattoir, co-op, live market, direct marketer

PROS• Price is known

ahead of time• Can negotiate price,

shrink, and delivery• No selling fees

CONS• Payment risk• May not be highest price

Direct marketingLive animal, whole carcass, wholesale or retail cuts

PROS• Highest income: potential

for highest profit• Set own prices• Opportunity to brand

productCONS• Costs - processing,

transportation, etc.• Time

Marketing tips

• Sell your goats at a profitable price; know your costs of production and breakeven price(s).

• Sell your goats for the highest net price; consider all your marketing costs.

• Know what your goats are worth and what they weigh.

• Don’t overplay the holidays.• Diversify your market.• Make a profit; better to sell

two #2’s than one #1.

Thank you for your attention.

Susan SchoenianUniversity of Maryland Extensionwww.sheepandgoat.com