Part of a 6-part webinar series: an introduction to small ruminants

1. Sheep&Goats
andTheir
Products
SUSANSCHOENIAN
Sheep&GoatSpecialist
UniversityofMarylandExtension
sschoen@umd.edu
sheepandgoat.com|sheep101.info|wormx.info

2. Sheep & Goats
produce many
marketable
products.
Meat
Fiber
Dairy
Vegetation control (grazing)
Agrotourism
Research and biomedical

3. MEAT
The primary product from sheep/goats and an important by-
product of dairy and fiber animals
• Sheep
• Lamb – under one year of age
• Yearling mutton – between 1
and 2 years of age
• Mutton – over one year of age
• Goat
• Cabrito – young goat
• Chevon

4. Issues and challenges
• Low per capita consumption
• Lamb – about 1 lb. per person
• Goat – about 0.25 per person
(Cornell estimate)
• Less infrastructure, especially
for goats
• Stiff competition from imports,
mostly from Australia
• Higher per unit costs of
Sheep Goat Beef Pork Chicke
n
Turkey Seafoo
d
1 0.25 57 54 65 17 16

5. Opportunities
• Demand exceeds supply
• Though per capita consumption is low, it is
much higher among people of certain
ethnicities, nationalities, and religions, e.g.,
Muslim, Hispanic, Orthodox Christian.
• Many of today’s immigrants are lamb and goat
eaters.
• Population demographics and immigration
patterns favor an increase in demand for
sheep and goat meat.

6. Marketing alternatives for
meat
TRADITIONAL
• Public auction
• Electronic auction
• Marketing cooperatives
• Abattoir (slaughterhouse)
• Order buyer, dealer
• Store or restaurant
NON-
TRADITIONAL
• Direct to consumer
• Live animals
• Whole or half carcasses
• Retail cuts
• On-farm slaughter

7. Pros and cons for selling
to auction
Pros
• Convenient, especially nearby
auctions
• Can sell almost any sheep or goat
• May have special sales prior to
major holidays
• Auctions are bonded; guaranteed
payment
Cons
• Selling fees can be high
• Transportation costs can be high
• Shrink can be high
• “Price taker”: price not known
ahead of time
• Prices can be volatile, esp. at small
volume auctions

8. Know how to read a sale
report

9. Tips for
selling to
an auction
• Timing – prior to
holidays
• Optimal weight for your
production system/profit
• Optimal condition –
flesh, fat, sex, tails
• Aim for highest net

10. What is an ethnic
market?
• Much lamb and almost all goat is
consumed by ethnic markets.
• Group of consumers who share a
common background, culture,
religion, national identity, or
language.
• Generally, refers to cultures other
than the majority culture in the
marketing area.

11. HOLIDAY
RELIGI
ON
2021 2022 2023 2024 2025
Eid ul-Adha:
Festival of the
Sacrifice
Muslim July 20-23 July 9-10 Jun 28-29 Jun 16-17 Jun 6-7
Muharramm/Hajra:
Islamic New Year
Muslim Aug 9-10 July 29-30 July 18-19 July 7-8 June 26-27
Mawlid al-Nabi:
Prophet's Birthday
Muslim Oct 18-19 Oct 7-8 Sept 26-27 Sept 15-16 Sept 4-5
Ramadan (month of
fasting)
Muslim
April 12-May
11
April 2-May
1
Mar 22-Apr
20
Mar 10-Apr
8
Feb 28-Mar
29
Eid ul-Fitr: Festival
of Fast Breaking
Muslim May 12-13 May 2-3 Apr 21-22 Apr 9-10 Mar 30-31
Pesch (Passover) Jewish
Mar 27-Apr
4
Apr 15-23 Apr 5-13 Apr 22-30 Apr 12-20
Rosh Hashanah Jewish Sept 6-8 Sept 25-27 Sept 15-27 Oct 2-4 Sept 22-24
Nov 29-Dec Dec 25-Jan
Ethnic holiday calendar,
2021-2025
Source:
sheepandgoat.com
*
*

12. Pros and cons of direct
marketing
PROS
• You set price
• No selling fees or commission
• Greater income/profit potential
• Connection with customers
CONS
• Scheduling slaughter
• High slaughter and processing
costs
• Time consuming

13. Slaughter
options for direct
marketers
• Federal (USDA)
Inspection
• State Inspection
• Custom-exempt
• Personal exemption
9/3/20XX 13

14. Federal
(USDA)
Inspection
• Highest level of
inspection
• Pre- and post-mortem
inspection of animal
• Can sell retail cuts (if
properly labeled)
• Nationwide sales

15. State
inspection
• In cooperation with USDA FSIS
• “At least equal to” federal standards.
• About half the states don’t have
state meat inspection; Maryland
does not
• Generally, cannot sell meat across
state-lines.

16. Custom Exempt
• Processing for owner(s) of animal
Need to sell live animal and have
customer pay processing
• Exempt from continuous inspection
• No pre- or post-mortem inspection
of animals
• Once or twice-yearly inspections of
facility
• Meat is stamped “not for resale”;
cannot be sold, traded, bartered, or
given away

17. Personal exemption
• Exempt from any inspection
• On-farm slaughter for
personal use
(family, guests, employees)
• Slaughter animal of own
raising.
• Meat cannot be sold, traded,

18. More about on-
farm slaughter
• A person may purchase livestock and
slaughter it on-site, so long as seller
doesn’t participate in the slaughter
and/or processing (per US code).
• Some states may have more stringent
regulations and prohibit on-farm
slaughter by customer.
• Regulations are sometimes interpreted
differently and sometimes

19. Tips for
direct
marketing
• Know what your animals
are worth
• Calculate your total costs
• Know what your
customers want
• Provide good customer
service

20. American Lamb Check-
off
• Money used to promote
American lamb
• Owed regardless of marketing
method
• Owed on every sheep and lamb,
regardless of age and sex
• Live weight assessment of $0.007
per pound
• First handler (owner at time of
slaughter)
https://americanlamb.com
https://www.lambresourcecenter.com

21. Fiber
• Wool (sheep)
• Fine | Crossbred | Medium |
Long (coarse) | Carpet
• White | Natural colored
• Mohair (Angora goats)
• Cashmere (Cashmere goats)
• Other – Pygora, Cashgora

22. Marketing alternatives for
fiber
TRADITIONAL
• Wool pools; Maryland no longer
has one
• Wool warehouses
• Order buyers (sometimes shearer)
• Options for marketing goat fibers
are more limited
NON-
TRADITIONAL
• Direct to the consumer
• Raw fiber (fleeces)
• Value-added
• Roving, yarn
• Blankets and apparel
• Felted items

23. Pelts (skins, hides)
• Pelt credit for commodity
lambs (large processors)
• Another potential profit center
• Can do it yourself or have
hides professionally tanned
• Prepare hides for professional
tanning by
• Working closely with processor
• Stretching, trimming, and

24. Dairy
• Similar situation as meat: most
cheese is imported.
• Dairy is one of the most
regulated foods
• Standards and licensing
requirements are usually
similar to cows.
• Regulations vary by state – e.g.,
some allow sales of raw milk or
cheese made from raw milk;

25. Other marketing options
for dairy
• Home consumption of
milk/milk products
• Feed milk to other livestock
• Sell as pet food (check state
regulations)
• Make soap and lotion

26. Get paid to graze
• Sheep best for controlling
grasses and forbs.
• Goats best for controlling brush
and browse.
• Sheep more suitable for solar
grazing.
• Usually, dry females are used
• High health standard for animals
– may need health papers and
rabies vaccinations.
• Need trailer to transport animals
https://solargrazing.
org

27. SUSAN SCHOENIAN
Sheep & Goat Specialist
University of Maryland Extension
sschoen@umd.edu
www.sheepandgoat.com
www.sheep101.info
www.wormx.info
Facebook @MDSmallRuminant
https://go.umd.edu/MDSmallRum
inantYouTube