BOZEMAN, Mont. (NMB) – The organizers of a new program to educate Montanans about meat goats as an income opportunity are hosting two free, public field days that will focus on meat goat production, marketing, predation, regulations and related topics.
Registration is required by Wednesday, July 27th, for both events.
The workshops are the initial offerings from GoatMT, a two-year collaboration between Montana State University Extension and Bar 88 Consulting and Livestock. The goal is to provide training and support for Montana meat goat producers and those interested in starting, expanding or diversifying their operations.
A commercial meat goat workshop is scheduled from 1-4 PM Friday, July 29th, at the Mountain View Co-op Feed Store, 1111 Smelter Ave. NE in Black Eagle. Topics include general production information and a producer panel that will compare production of meat goats to hair goats and production of wool sheep to hair sheep.
A second workshop is set for 1-7 PM Sunday, July 31st, at 150 N. Frontage Road in Park City. Directional signs will be posted. Topics at this workshop include prescriptive grazing considerations, health protocols, a tour of the Hollenbeck ranch facilities and a goat barbecue with tips on how to prepare goat meat.
Speakers at both events include Reid Redden, Texas A&M AgriLife Extension sheep and goat specialist; Carl Whitworth, a Texas rancher and meat goat producer; and representatives from Wildlife Services, MSU Extension, the American Goat Federation and the Montana Wool Growers Association. Goat producers will host a marketing and production panel at both workshops.
Over the next two years, program leaders plan to hold workshops, webinars and on-farm trainings, as well as provide mentoring across the state to address the need and growing demand for information about goat production, said Brent Roeder, MSU Extension sheep specialist.
“Goat production has expanded over the past 20 years, from the traditional production areas of the desert southwest into almost all areas of the U.S.,” Roeder said. “Small-acreage producers and larger cattle operations are now adding goats for weed control and income diversification.”
Meat goat kids are selling for $3 to $4 per pound, he added, leading producers to explore adding goats as another source of revenue.
“The same markets fueling the strong demand for lamb are now also leading the demand for more goat meat than the U.S. can supply,” Roeder said. “In the past, the U.S. has been the world’s largest importer of goat meat at 50 million pounds per year, mostly from Australia, but with proper genetics and management, goats can be successfully run in Montana.”
To register for one or both workshops or for more information about the workshops, email Denise Hoepfner at denise.hoepfner@montana.edu. For more information about Goat Montana, visit goatmt.org.
