How To Start A Profitable Goat Farming Business

One major form of animal farming that has not been adequately tapped by Nigerian farmers and agro investors is goat farming.

Everywhere in the world, goat meat has been rated high in nutrition and very important alternative to beef which has been noted to be a major cause of over accumulation of cholesterol. Goat meat is generally acceptable and consumed worldwide as a major table delight.

However, as nutritious as goat meat is, as desired as goat meat is,as marketable as as goat meat is, Nigerian investors and farmers are yet to adequately tap into this venture and reap the abundant profit therein.

Goat farming is unarguably a vast investment opportunity for any serious entrepreneur to make huge returns of profits on investment.

This is assured because goat meat has a very high demand than any other animal meat such as beef,chicken which have high concentrates of animal fats. An intensive investment in goat farming can also produce goat milk that is currently demanded for the production of cheese, butter, ice cream and yoghurt.

Also, in Nigeria, only a few supermarkets can boast of having goat meat for sale while beef and chicken are abundantly available. The demand is absolutely high. More so, the meat could be used for all kinds of delicacies ranging from Stew, Soup, Pepper Soup, Suya, the popular Isi-Ewu, etc.

These various forms of consumption have made its demand very high. It may interest us to know that in view of the afore mentioned high demand, about 60% of goats meant for consumption in Nigeria is imported form Niger Republic, 30% is realized from goat farms in the North while as little as 10% is realized from isolated goat farms across other parts of Nigeria.

Therefore, given the current campaign and advocacy for direct increase in Agriculture, goat farming is a sure way for increased productivity and boost in the employment generation drive of the nation.

It may also interest us to know that goat farming has a capacity to increase the revenue base of a nation as it has proven in some countries to be the major source of family income, where families produce averagely per family about 500 to 700 goats annually.

The cumulative results of this is that the families as goat farmers produce beyond the consumption capacities of such nations. When this happens, there is enough for export which thereby result in foreign exchange earnings.

With the availability of grazing land in Nigeria,we can have goat farming investors that could produce more than the local market demand in Nigeria. That would be a direct foreign exchange earning. This means there is a huge untapped market potential for goat farming. 

Why wait when this opportunity is there? Why choosing to be unemployed when you can earn much from goat farming. YES YOU CAN ! Invest in goat farming now and reap high profits.

HOW TO START A GOAT FARM

 
There are basic things an investor or a farmer must consider adequately in setting up a goat farm. Such things include:

(1) GRAZING LAND

 
A farmer must acquire a pasture as grazing land for his goats. Goats need good pasture because they eat quite a variety of grasses, weeds, leaves and plants. They also tend to eat these and other varieties at different seasons. 

Although, other formulated animal feed could be used, it is more advisable and cheaper to allow goats on a grazing land and natural pasture.

It is important to also know that goats like roaming and they eat while moving. This therefore means that we must strive to acquire space for their natural grazing. 

The land considered for acquisition here , however depends on the number of goats one wishes to keep in his farm. 

We need to keep a maximum of 20 goats in an acre of land This space is necessary because goats like to move about in spacious environment. 

They like to move away from each other. For the farmer, it is also necessary to disallow over crowding because over crowding would aid disease contamination and spread. Therefore to keep 600 goats, we need about 30 acres of pasture ground.

(2) FENCING.

 
Fencing is another major thing to be considered in goat farming. Once the land has been acquired, it is highly necessary to fence it . Although , some farmers may decide to construct perimeter short block fence round the pasture ground, it is however recommend to use barb wire to fence the farm. This would allow adequate exposure to natural ventilation. 

The barb wire fence is also more protected against external predators like carnivorous beasts. This fence should be about 1.3 to 1.5 meters high. With this, the goats cannot successfully climb over the fence.

PROVISION OF REST HOUSE

 
Goat generally like to rest after eating . And in doing so, they like to move over to a comfortable place in the farm to rest, just as humans like to rest after work. Goats do not like to stay in the rain or remain in a hot atmosphere in a sunny day. 

Also, when the weather is too cold for them, they move over to a more favorable place. This is why housing is a major consideration.

VETERINARY OFFICER(S)

 
There is the need to ensure the availability of veterinary services . You may need to hire a veterinary officer who will daily monitor the well being of the goats and administer the necessary medication if the need arises . You could also arrange a contact with a veterinary officer, who would from time to time visit your farm to assess your goats. The method adopted here is largely dependent on the number of goats in the farm.

PROFIT MARGIN IN GOAT FARMING.

 
It has already been established that there is a wide profit margin in goat farming. I want to state that one can start small ,but this business has a limitless capacity of expansion. Assuming one starts this business at a small scale of about 420 goats , a matured goat for harvest for sale is sold at about N15, 000. 

If you produce 400 goats at N15,000 ( assuming you lost 20 goats to mortality) you would realize N6,000,000. That is , 420 minus 20. This leaves us with 400 goats. Then, multiply 400 by N15,000. 

Assuming you incure as high as N1,000,000 as costs of purchasing kid goats ,feeding and medication, you would have made a profit of N5,000,000. 

That means after about 2 years of establishing this business , your money making venture is sure and guaranteed. N5,000,000 annually puts you at a monthly salary of about N400,000.

This is indeed a business with high profit on return. It is also less time consuming and you can engage in other businesses while doing goat farming.

Thinking of starting a goat farm? Yes ! Take the step to start. This is the right time. Let your farm take off in January. Prepare for it now. It is simple and stress free. At your request, we can help you prepare a feasibility report and business plan to properly take off. Why feasibility report? This will enable you to know the A to Z about Goat Farming, approach a Micro Finance Bank or Agric Development Bank in case you need a loan which would not be much. A business plan would also act as a working guide on stages of this business.