Meat and Livestock Australia

Rangeland goat production inWestern NSW: Where are they now? 55 Recommendations Recommendations have been made in response to points outlined in the SWOT analysis, along with observations made as the report was compiled. Six recommendations are made, in no order, with brief context given. 1. Uptake of benchmarking across the industry. Benchmarking allows business performance to be assessed and opportunities for improvement to be identified. The need for industry to begin benchmarking business performance is identified in the Goatmeat and Livestock Industry Strategic Plan 2020 and was also recommended in the 2012 case study report. The development of a cost of production calculator tool is a positive development in this area. It was however of some concern to identify a reduced number of producers collecting information on kidding and weaning rates. As a solely meat producing enterprise, reproductive performance is a key profit driver. Therefore, it is important that it is understood. Difficulties in accurately assessing kidding and weaning rates in a continuously joined herd are acknowledged. 2. Registration of a pour-on anthelmintic for goats. This was raised as a priority for a number of producers in the 2012 case study report. This was largely a response to excessively wet summers that had occurred in the years prior. Landholder observations over the last 5 years indicate that worms can still impact growth rates of goats in less extreme seasons. Valuable work has been done in registering new anthelmintics for goats, however, all are oral products. Pour-on products allow a greater ease of application and avoids potential under-dosing if goats are reluctant to receive oral drenches. 3. Development of rangeland adapted Boer goats. Producers have displayed benefits in weight gain and carcass yield achieved through the influence of Boer genetics on rangeland goats. However there has also been substantial difficulty faced with poor survivability, poor joining rates and overall poor stock quality in Boer bucks. Some research has been done in this field but more is needed. It would also be useful for rangeland producers and Boer goat breeders to increase communication and collaboration. This may be beneficial for the development of an animal that is better suited to rangeland production systems. Opportunity may also exist in the greater utilisation of Red Boers opposed to the traditional whited bodied Boers.