Top States for Number of Meat Goats
Most of the meat goats in the United States are produced in states in the Mid-South (Texas), the Southeast (Tennessee, Georgia, Kentucky, North Carolina, Florida and Alabama), the Midwest (Oklahoma, Missouri) and the West (California). More than 75 percent of meat goats are produced by the top 10 states in number of meat goats. According to the 2007 USDA-NASS sample data, Texas leads the nation with more 1 million meat goats and 44 …
Status of Goat Farms in the United States I: All Goats and Angora Goats
According to the 2002 USDA Census, the number of goat farms increased more than 19 percent, with more than a 12-percent increase in the goat population, from 1997 to 2002. However, the number of farms selling goats increased by more than 45 percent, and goat sales were up by more than 55 percent (Table 1). USDA-National Agricultural Statistics Service 2007 sample data indicated that goat numbers …
Goat Consumption Based on Import and Slaughter Data
Goat consumption in the United States can be estimated based on imported goat meat and slaughter data. Nearly 1.5 million head are consumed annually. This represents an increase of 150 percent from 2002 and more than 320 percent increase from 1999. Total goats imported were estimated based on total goat meat imported and an average carcass weight of 32.5 pounds. (65 pounds of live weight is the average slaughter weight reported by …
FACTORS THAT MAY AFFECT GOAT MEAT CONSUMPTION
U.S. Population Changes
The major contributing factor for the rise in interest in goat meat production in the United States is the shift in demographics. According to the 2000 Population Census, the foreign-born population in this country is up 57 percent since 1990 — from 19.8 million to 31.1 million — and continues to increase in an upward trend that started in 1970. As of 2000, 51.7 percent of the foreign-born population was …
Import and Export of Goat Meat
The United States was a net exporter of goat meat up until 1990. Exports ceased due to increased domestic demand after 1994. This shift is another indication of increased interest in goat meat consumption nationally. In 2007, the United States imported 10,166 metric tons (MT), or nearly 23 million pounds, of goat meat. With an average carcass weight of 32 pounds each, an estimated 718,000 goat carcasses were imported. This number of goats imported …
U.S. Goat population Changes
According to the 2007 USDA-NASS, the U.S. goat population is little over 3 million heads. Goat numbers have increased more than 5 percent annually from 1985 to 2007 (Figure 1). More than 83 percent of goats in this country are meat goats, 10 percent are dairy goats and 7 percent are fiber goats (Table 6). While meat and dairy goats have increased in numbers, fiber goats numbers have been reduced by almost 50 percent and represent …
Trends in the U.S. Goat Industry (2007)
The following sections are designed to assess the current goat industry in the United States, with emphasis on its future outlook. In the United States, goats are used mainly for meat, milk and fiber production, but also as a holistic tool for land vegetation management and fire fuel load control. The data presented is drawn from four different sources—the 2000 U.S. population census, the USDA 2002 Census of …
Top States for Number of Fiber Goats
More than 85 percent of the fiber goats are produced in the top four states for the number of fiber goats (Table 9). Most of the fiber goats are produced in the Mid-South (Texas), the Southwest (Arizona, New Mexico) and the West (California, Oregon), with a little production in the Midwest (Nebraska, Missouri, Minnesota). Although the number of fiber goats continued to decline from the 2002 USDA census, Colorado, Nebraska, Minnesota and Missouri …
Top States for Number of Dairy Goats
More than 57 percent of dairy goats are produced in the top 10 states in number of dairy goats (Table 8). Most of the dairy goat producing states are located in the Midwest (Wisconsin, Iowa, Ohio, Missouri and Indiana), the Northeast (New York, Pennsylvania and New England) and the South (Texas). Wisconsin, with a 27-percent increase in the number of dairy goats from the 2002 USDA Census, leads the nation in the number …
Status of Goat Farms in the U.S. II:Dairy and Meat Goats
The number of U.S. dairy goat farms increased by 45 percent, and dairy goat numbers increased by 52.5 percent from 1997 to 2002. The number of farms selling them increased by 71 percent, and the number of goats sold increased 57 percent (Table 4). According to the 2007 USDA-NASS sample data, dairy goats gained another 5 percent in numbers from the 2002 USDA census.
Table 4. Changes in dairy …
