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NJDA SEEKS YOUNG AND NEW FARMERS FOR EMERGING MEAT GOAT MARKET
Loans To Purchase Goats Are Available
 

For Immediate Release: June 25, 2004

Contact:

Jeff Beach
(609)292-8896
jeffrey.beach@ag.state.nj.us

 

 

 

(TRENTON) – The New Jersey Department of Agriculture is looking for people to raise kids.

That’s “kids” as in young goats, and farmers are needed to raise more of them to supply the growing demand for goat meat in the region.

Both aspiring young farmers as well as adults new to farming are being sought to participate in a program geared toward increasing the number of people raising meat goats.

Changing demographics in the state have led to the increased demand for goat meat. So the Department is launching a program to select youth from FFA Chapters and 4-H Clubs to receive Junior Breeder Loans for the purchase of meat kids from a meat goat breeder. The goats will be raised to maturity for sale in early October for Ramadan.

“This Meat Goat Project addresses two of the major components for keeping agriculture vital in New Jersey – adapting to meet the changing demands of consumers and equipping the next generation of farmers for success,” said New Jersey Agriculture Secretary Charles M. Kuperus. “The future success of our state’s farmers depends on being innovative enough to keep up with ever-changing markets.

Secretary Kuperus added that beyond the Junior Breeder Loans, the Department is looking for new and beginning farmers to participate in meat goat programs.

“This really is an expanding piece of New Jersey’s agricultural mosaic,” Secretary Kuperus said. “An enterprising young farmer would be ahead of the curve if he or she entered the goat market at this time.”

The demand in the Garden State for goat meat currently is outpacing locally raised supply. In the span between the 1990 and 2000 Census, the state saw a 76 percent increase in Asian population and a 51 percent increase in Hispanic population. Goat is a staple in the diet of both groups, as well as for Greeks, Jamaicans and Muslims.

Through a $31,000 Federal State Marketing Improvement Program Grant, the Department will work with the Rutgers Cooperative Extension, Cook College and other interested groups and agencies to administer the project.

To qualify for a Junior Breeder Loan, each participant must agree to:

- Have the property where the goats will be finished inspected by the Department of Agriculture
- Follow prescribed health and feeding programs to ensure the animals’ well-being
- Handle the animals consistent with the Humane Treatment for Domestic Livestock standards
- Maintain up-to-date records of growth and care
- Show and sell the project animals
- Submit a deposit of $25 per animal
- Participate in carcass evaluation

Those with questions should e-mail Lynn Mathews or Dan Wunderlich at the NJDA at lynn.mathews@ag.state.nj.us or dan.wunderlich@ag.state.nj.us.

To learn more about the Youth Meat Goat Project, click here.

To access the program's electronic application, click here.