Meat and Livestock Australia

48 Big Ampi Rangeland Goats CASE STUDY Producer: • Big Ampi Pty Ltd Property: • Big Ampi Station, 50 km south-east of Menindee • Mt Hope Station, 20 km north of Hillston Area: • Big Ampi 54,434 ha • Mt Hope 25,003 ha Rainfall (avg/ a): • Big Ampi 260 mm • Mt Hope 380 mm Enterprise: • Composite rangeland goats for domestic and export markets, Merino sheep and beef cattle Key messages • A premium product is required in the domestic market and this needs to be reflected in prices received by producers. • Composite bred goats may respond differently to more intensive management than rangeland goats. • Objective measurement combined with practical experience provides a strong base on which sound management decisions can be made. Looking back Big Ampi Station was purchased by its current owners in 2005. At this point it was being run as a primarily Merino enterprise. As was the case across much of western NSW, rangeland goats were present on the property and considered to be largely a pest species. Goats were harvested and sold for a small return in order to reduce competition for available feed. During this time when contractors were used to conduct broad scale goat musters, all non-saleable animals were taken by contractors for a negligible payment. At this point, a single ‘goat paddock’ was established in order to allow under-weight goats to be grown out and sold. With an established paddock allowing for closer observation, experimentation began by selecting and breeding superior rangeland harvested goats. While it was long acknowledged that goats were well adapted to the rangeland environment of Big Ampi, they now felt that opportunity existed to develop a genetically superior animal. At this point, the key limiting factor in the expansion of Big Ampi into managed goats was fence infrastructure. For such substantial investment to be made into fencing required confidence that sufficient profit margins existed within the goat industry. This point was reached as goatmeat prices broke $5/kg cwt. Subsequently, Big Ampi undertook a substantial capital expenditure program in order to equip the property to produce goats. While still in the development stage, it is now a business that boasts a substantial goat enterprise. As Big Ampi Rangeland Goats continues to expand, it is assessing and utilising all available technologies, research and information to create a highly productive enterprise. This development and management strategy is described as being guided by modern science laid over contemporary wisdom.