Are Goat Farms Becoming More Popular?
Goats are making a slow and steady comeback. I say comeback because goats have been a crucial component of food security from the beginning of time. Believed to be the first domesticated animals thousands of years ago, goats have played a role in building cultures, economically sustaining communities and creating food secure regions all over the globe.
Compared to pigs or cows, goats mature faster and can be bred sooner. Their short gestation period, which allows them to give birth sometimes twice a year, coupled with a high rate of twinning means herd sizes can grow faster than other animals raised for food. And, they thrive in environments deemed unsuitable for agricultural endeavors.
While you might not find a refrigerated section devoted to prime cuts of goat meat at your local supermarket, emerging nations have long relied on goats as a high quality source of nutrition and a reliable protein option able to be raised in even the harshest of landscapes. In fact, gifting goats has been a tool used to reduce poverty and malnutrition in regions where agricultural and transportation infrastructure are lacking.
Goats To Solve Sustainability Issues
The goat sector appears to be growing in portions of the world where there are few options for getting the farm to a market and the majority of what is grown is consumed by a single family. Of the world’s farmers, 85% produce food with limited agricultural resources and on small pieces of land. These little plots of ground sprinkled all over the globe support only one or two crops and don’t always accommodate larger livestock like pigs and cows. Because they are not tied into large operations, extreme weather can devastate small scale food production; and that is exactly what is happening on every continent.
Prolonged droughts and frequent flooding are factors reshaping agriculture everywhere. Goats, among other animals, are presenting feasible solutions to sustainability issues. In the South African region of Limpopo, cattle were once the predominant choice for small holder communities. Despite regular dry seasons, the area could support them. These days, dry seasons are longer and drought conditions mean the ground can no longer support beef production; even if it leans more towards subsistence than industrialization.
The area has once again turned to goats. With only the options to adapt or move, farmers are making livestock decisions that will last long term. Goats offer a climate resilience advantage that cows don’t and, whether for milk or meat, they are cheaper to raise. If you have access to infrastructure or the financial means to create it, tapping into more abundant water supplies or building healthy soil would keep the beef industry stable. But small subsistence farms rarely have the ability to do so.
A Growing Goat Sector in the U.S.
It’s not just impoverished areas of the world turning to goats as an economically feasible and environmentally sustainable livestock option. Here in the United States goat milk is replacing cow milk. Between 2003 and 2020 the number of dairy farms decreased by half while goat milk farms doubled. Dairies in Vermont, Maine and New York who were on the brink of closing up shop have opted to change course, liquidate dairy cows and purchase milking goats.
America's growing demand for goat cheese has made it possible for dairy farmers to diversify rather than eliminate milking operations. Goats may have fewer milking days per year, but they also eat less and differently than dairy cows do, creating a more flexible business model. As American consumers become increasingly accustomed to goat milk derived dairy products it is possible that they become more readily available.
In the same way we compare cows to goats in terms of resilience and sustainability, we can also compare ducks and chickens. Producing nutrient dense food on less ground, or in the case of goats, sparse feed, has always been a part of agriculture discussions. If we can’t repeat the food cultivating process with similar results then the chain is unreliable and the risk of food insecurity climbs.
Bangladesh has experienced extreme flooding which has weakened a food supply chain. Where once you might have seen chickens in every yard, today you are likely to find ducks throughout a wet region that’s increasingly waterlogged. Unlike chickens, ducks are adaptable to rising water levels and have access to additional food sources simply because they can swim. Plus, ducks offer a higher return on investment. Raising them is not only profitable, it’s a sustainable choice given changing weather patterns and a need to maintain economic momentum in rural communities.
Viewing food security first through the lens of environmental sustainability is a global shift. A growing number of climate refugees are abandoning small farm plots because extreme weather is changing environments and making it impossible to guarantee food supplies. Often, the towns they flee to cannot support an influx of people and the issue of a prolonged rainy season or extreme drought affect more than just subsistence farmers. It strains fragile emerging economies. Supporting small holder farms with durable food supplies like goats in turn supports industrialized food systems relied upon by large cities and towns.
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