U.S. Goat Production Remains Far Behind Demand for Meat

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Article from Meat Goat Monthly Magazine - November 2003
www.ranchmagazine.com

The United States imports more goat meat than any other country. Ethnic communities in larger population areas in the United States keep demand high for goat meat that sometimes is not available or is available at too-steep prices. Yet, U.S. producers lag behind farmers in the world's top goat producing countries by tens of millions of head. As U.S. productions grows and the industry matures, an essential ingredient for success will be added demand for goat meat from mainstream consumers.

That is the analysis given by Dr. Rick Machen, associate professor and livestock specialist with Texas Cooperative Extension in San Angelo. He was speaking on the "Big Pictures" in goat economics at the Goat Gathering III event held July 21-23 in Seguin, Texas."They eat a lot of goat in China," Machen said, citing that country's inventory of near 150 million head. Compared to China, India and other top producing countries, U.S. goat inventory is "just a drop in the bucket," he said.

Though they don't top the list in goat numbers, Australia and New Zealand are the major exporters of goat meat to the U.S. "We're importing the equivalent of about 400,000 goats per year,"  Machen said. You would think that Australia and A New Zealand would be the main competitors for U.S. producers. Not at all, Machen said. The competitors for goat producers in this country are poultry, pork, beef, lamb and fish.

The ethnic demand remains and is growing steadily. "The ethnic populations are our consumers," he said. But if goat producers would band together to produce a steady, reliable and consisted domestic supply of goat meat, market that domestic supply effectively, and educate the mainstream consumer about the product, then a whole new group of consumers would be established.

You always hear the refrain, "We need to get more people to eat goat meat," he said. The problem is doing it and shoving aside our completion - the mainstream consumer meats that take up 99 percent of the meat case at the supermarket.

To give goat meat more appeal to the mainstream consumer, Machen suggested a marketing approach that recognizes the realities of modern life. Young professionals have little time to spend on preparation or on learning how to prepare something new, so why not develop a pre-cooked, pre-packaged product? What frazzled wife is going to purchase half a cabrito in the butcher shop and go home to try and learn how to prepare it? Our ethnic consumers are used to buying the product that way, but not our potential mainstream consumers, he explained.

To get more people to eat goat meat, the mainstream consumer, a goat cooperative, association or group of breeders and middlemen would have to accomplish customer/consumer education, ensure availability of the product, educate consumers about preparation, and implement product development, stressing a "user-friendly" goat meat product. One such user friendly product would be attractively packaged pre-cooked meal such as those already found in the supermarket freezer featuring beef and chicken.

Another complaint heard at  the goat pen and breed association meetings is "we need to get more restaurants to put goat on the menu." To do so would require constant availability of boxed goat meat cuts that are of consistent size and quality. The industry would need to make inroads to high end restaurants where menus already crowded with familiar meats. Even if that is done, a better approach might be to strike a deal with a fast food chain such as Taco Bell for them to feature " cabrito fajita burritos" or something  along that line, Machen said.

In the written portion of Dr. Machen's presentation, he cites studies which predict consumer activity in the upcoming decade. Food service, meaning restaurants and already prepared meals, will  for the  first time have a larger share of consumers' food dollar than will the retail grocery industry, according to a study by the International Foodservice Distributors Association.

"Full service restaurants will outpace quick serve restaurants in the decade ahead, a development heavily influenced by changing consumer demand. Convenience stores will become increasingly important venues for foodservice offerings," the study states.

Other studies indicate that modern Americans want to be able to quickly and easily  prepare meals. An article in NPD Pantry Check states that "during the week, 40 percent of all households spend less the 30 minutes on meal preparation, 78 percent spend less that 45 minutes. Dinner meals are becoming simpler; the number of ingredients being used is at an all-time low and fewer dishes are being served."

Steve Harper of HEB Food Stores, a large grocery chain in Texas based in San Antonio, said of the chain's house-brand freezer meat product, "Our new heat-and-serve, precooked beef patty exceeded our expectations. We anticipated $1 million in sales the first year. We went more than $1 million in sales in 45 days!"

In his written report Machen opines, "The meat goat industry needs one industry organization around which the entire industry can rally. To date, the most active organizations have focused their efforts on gaining membership, registries, live animal evaluation clinics, goat shows and production sales. All these activities are certainly important but in the near future, efforts must move forward in the areas of consumer education and consumer-friendly product development and promotion.