Goat Industry in Bataan free essay sample

Goat industry has been one of the promising sectors in the whole livestock industry. However, this is one of the sectors in the industry that has less government support. In fact, less has been done in the production of this small ruminant thus it is expected that there is low supply of the goat meat or chevon, which is a very good alternate or substitute to the much expensive beef and pork. In Bataan, goat ranked fourth in the preferred list of domesticated animals (goat ranks third in the ruminant category) in the farm, according to the Office of the Provincial Veterinarian (OPV-Bataan). Aside from low investment capital required, goat raising is favored due to the popularity of chevon among the local consumers manifested by the ever increasing demands among eateries and during special occasions. With the intention of determining the present status of production, the industry’s problems and prospects, a comprehensive study must be done, hence this study. Objectives Essentially, the objective of this study is to determine the socio-economic conditions of goat raiser in the province of Bataan. Specifically this study aims to determine the present status of the goat industry as to the current population, goat management practices, goat genetic improvement practices as well as marketing problems and potentials. Methodology Gathering of primary data from interviews on people directly engaged in backyard as well as in commercial production will be done. This will encompass goat production practitioners who will be categorized into traditional farmers, STBF beneficiaries, agricultural government institutions engaged in breeding, production and distributions, non-government organizations and agricultural state colleges and institutions that have had vast experiences in the field. Secondary data will be sourced out from publications, books, articles, magazines, and the internet. These will include information encompassing all aspects of the goat industry especially on the production or supply side in the province of Bataan. These data and information will be of help in determining the directions of goat industry specifically for the province and in the region in general. The Philippines Goat Industry According to BAS, the country’s goat inventory as of January 1, 2009 was estimated at 4. 19 million heads, 0. 42% percent higher compared with last year’s headcount which was pegged at 4. 17 million heads (Table 2). Around 37. 39 percent of the goat population were female breeders or doe, 8. 89 percent were male breeders or buck, 32. 75 percent were kids, and 20. 7 percent were classified as castrated male and other goat for fattening (Figure 2). The annual average farmgate price of live goat increased by 16. 65 percent from Php 75. 29 per kilogram in 2008 to Php 87. 83 per kilogram in 2009. The Bataan Goat Industry: A Preview A total of 133 respondents or an average of eleven (11) goat raisers in each of the twelve (12) municipalities of Bataan were initially interviewed and were provided with questionnaires regarding basic goat management practices in order to somehow see the current trend in the province’s goat industry. Demographic Profile Based on the number of respondents, goat raisers are predominantly male having eight-eight percent (88%) and twelve percent (12%) female. Most of them are farmers while others are entrepreneurs. [pic][pic] As shown in Figure 4, majority of goat raisers belong to the 36-40 age bracket, followed by the 41-45 age group. Most of the respondents have a monthly income of Php4,000 to Php6,000 which is basically small, that is why most of them consider goat raising as an alternative source of income (Figure 5). [pic] Population by Breed and Classification [pic] The above figure (Figure 6) shows that goats being raised or bred by farmers are mostly native goats (87%). Those farmers who have a goat population size of about 10 or more heads have upgraded goats (13%), usually with Anglonubian lineage. No purebred and fullblooded goats were listed since these are expensive and most of the respondents are ordinary farmers. Goat Management Practices Housing Local sheds are the most commonly used housing of goats in Bataan. Goat housing made up of improved local materials are used by farmers only when there goat population reaches 15 to 20, which in this case, does not happen often. [pic] Population Mix It could be seen at once in Figure 8 that all respondents do not practice segregation of goats, either by age or by sex. Most of the respondents say that these are expensive since you have to establish partitions on forage areas as well as to the goat housing, while others find it time-consuming, since goat raising is usually only an alternative source of income. [pic] Feeding Practices [pic] As shown in the above figure, free-range feeding or complete grazing and tethering feeding systems are common to backyard farmers who raise three to five native does. Mixture of confinement and pasture grazing practices is done when concentrate supplementation is done, which in most cases are only done occassionally, and when there is available pasture areas nearby. Most of the large-scale farmers use semi-confinement system and most of them raise upgraded goats and crosses. Rotational grazing is done by farmers based on the availability of diverse forage grasses in pasture areas. Confinement feeding is seldomly practiced since grasses are cut and given directly to goats and this entails cost and time of farmers who consider goat raising only as an alternative source of income. But whatever system a farmer adopts, he needs to have a good pasture area. Type of Pasture Most of the respondents only rely on native grasses or what is readily available in their respective pasture areas (89%) while others who find time and has enough money to set up an improved pasture area, plant diverse varieties of forage grasses for goat consumption. Most backyard goat raisers often overlook the importance of nutrition as one of the leading factors in goat production. Good nutrition gives good production and consequently higher income. This can be only achieved if you have good quality forage for the animals. Unfortunately, only 11% of the total number of respondents establishes improved forage areas. pic] Disease Prevention [pic] Most of the farmers rely on the disease prevention programs that are initiated by the Office of the Provincial Veterinarian (OPV) in collaboration with municipal LGUs, in which vaccination is the most common practice in keeping goats healthy and dise ase-free. Vitamins supplementation or the provision of mineral block or salt is also a common practice done by farmers since this is inexpensive and salt is common to any household. Deworming, delousing and hoof trimming are also done by farmers with the aid of OPV personnel, although not as frequent as giving vitamins supplementation and vaccination. Breeding Practices Since most of the respondents have only local sheds to house their stocks and population mix is mostly communal, bucks are just left to roam around within the herd. Those who practice controlled breeding practices either has an appropriate goat housing or has a purebred or upgraded breeder buck. The breeder buck in this case has a separate house or a partition inside a goat house could be seen. [pic] Breeder Genetic Make-Up Since upgraded and purebred bucks costs much, most of the respondents use native bucks in breeding. Those who has the capacity to have upgraded bucks or purebred bucks prefer Anglonubian and Saanen breeds. Some communities have a common anglonubian or saanen breeder buck that roams around. These groups regularly replace the said breeder after goat raisers have produced kids using their breeder stock to avoid inbreeding. [pic] Genetic Improvement Practices Because of seminars and orientations done by LGUs and government agencies, farmers are more and more becoming aware of the advantages of genetic improvement practices. Not only does upgraded goats costs higher that native ones, they also produce more milk and kidding rate is higher. Most of the farmers make sure that there is absence of in-breeding (55%) in the herd. Infusion of new blood lines (40%) is also practiced in order to fully improve the genetic make-up of their stocks. Lastly, semi-commercial and commercial scale raisers practices continuous selection and culling of goats with undesirable traits and characteristics. [pic] Finance and Marketing Marketing Practices and Pricing Marketing and pricing of goats are usually done by estimation. Based on the conducted interviews, a one-year old to two-year old goat (by estimation/no fixed price) usually sells for Php1,500 to as high as Php3,000 in Bataan. Goats are usually marketed as goat delicacies especially during special occasions such as feasts and birthdays. Selling goat by weight (per kilo basis) is more often used when dealing with breeder goats, and slaughter goats. Goat raisers who are already immersed in the goat industry are very critical to the age and liveweight of the breeder goats they will purchase. Upgraded breeder bucks usually sell for Php8,000 to Php10,000. Purebred and full blood bucks prices ranges from Php20,000 to Php30,000. Volume of Sales and Frequency of Selling Backyard raisers who have at least ten stocks usually sell stocks quarterly, disposing one to two heads per transaction. Those who have twenty or more goat usually dispose ten heads every six months or sometimes yearly, depending on the demand. Concluding Remarks Goat industry in Bataan has been evolving considering that there are actually efforts to increase production and management of goat in the field. Although majority of them are backyard raisers, they are very much will in developing their farms using advanced technology in their management practices. Nonetheless, there are still few who are adapting the said technology and still into knowledge creation without application primarily due to many considerations such as resources. The province is still not a chevon eater, the reason why there is still a considerable low market, low volume in the area. But despite of this, there are still farmers and entrepreneurs that are into goat production because of the demand of nearby areas outside of the province thus an opportunity to further increase both the supply and demand side. On the supply side, improving production system will further increase and improve volume of production in the province while on the demand side, appreciation of the quality of goat products among other alternatives such as pork, chicken and beef is still necessary. This could be done by having slaughtered goats go through hygienic meat processing certified by local meat inspectors and then introducing and promoting chevon to the local market and other meat stores.