A review of the New Zealand goat industry

Abstract

The goat in New Zealand has long been an accepted but largely ignored animal. In recent years interest in the goat has revived. This is especially so in terms of mohair production, as a result of the current high prices available for mohair, but interest has also been evident in the increased use of goats for milk production with demand for goat milk products at relatively high prices (relative to cow milk products); interest in goats is also evident for weed control. In addition, the complementary nature (with sheep) of the goat production enterprise and the opportunity provided by the goat for product diversification, has encouraged conventional farmers to more seriously view the goat as a productive animal than previously. This report has been produced to provide an overview of the existing goat industry and, as a result of that overview, provide some comments on the possible future of the goat in New Zealand. The report does not pretend to be exhaustive in its coverage nor does it purport to give an authoritative view, but rather draws together some threads of existing information and, based on those, makes an attempt to look a little further ahead. In providing this overview, the background to the New Zealand situation has been considered by reviewing the world scene and then looking at the historical development of goat farming in New Zealand. Based on this, the present position of the goat in New Zealand is reviewed in terms of distribution and its utilisation as a productive animal; some general comments regarding husbandry are also given. The marketing of goat products is covered by reviewing general product characteristics and discussing the markets available for such products. The formal organisation of the industry has been briefly mentioned in terms of producer organisations and government legislation affecting the industry before some comments are made on the possible future place of the goat in the New Zealand economy. Consideration of the points raised in this report and the opportunities provided by goat products are essential to an economy where product diversification has become an extremely important feature.