In Britain, the BBC Good Food magazine listed goat meat as one of its top food trends for 2019, stating that a move towards the protein could reduce waste. According to the report, 100,000 young male goats are culled annually as they can’t produce milk, so it suggested that it was time to make use of the animal.
Of course this report sparked a wave of goat meat recipes, as well as plenty of ‘kid’ puns. But is the BBC late to the party on goat meat?
Goat meat is more commonly consumed in African, Asia and the Caribbean, where the meat has long been used in diets more often than in Britain.
It’s not even the first time goat meat has been the subject of this limelight. In 2015, a Scottish project campaigned for domestic farmers to consider goat meat and improve on the 450,000 goats produced for meat. It’s unknown if this campaign was a success.
Elsewhere, James Whetlor, the founder of goat meat producer Carbrito, has been running Goatober since 2016. Predating some of the more ridiculous month and activity portmanteaus that have been created of late, Goatober is a month-long celebration of goat meat to tackle exactly the same issue the BBC Good Food magazine has highlighted – waste.
On this occasion, it appears that Australia is ahead of the curve when it comes to realising the potential of goat meat. The country is one of the world’s biggest goat meat exporters and, in 2017, Australian goat meat exports totalled 28,426 tonnes shipped weight, and were valued at AU$257m. It is also halfway through a five-year research and development plan to improve goat meat sales.
Created by the Goat Industry Council of Australia (GICA), with support from Meat & Livestock Australia (MLA), it details some clear targets for the sector. GICA president John Falkenhagen said an additional AU$13m could be generated for the industry.
“Within the current Goat meat and Livestock Industry Strategic Plan, the vision is to secure the industry’s future as an innovative, profitable and resilient world leader in goat production,” he said.
“We are now halfway through the plan’s timeframe and the mid-term review has been completed by GICA and MLA, concluding the industry is overwhelmingly making good progress.
“The plan identified several KPIs and critical success factors to enable the industry to grow and prosper.
“A feasibility study into opportunities to encourage goat meat consumption in Australia has been completed and identified that value-adding could create more demand and potentially generate $13 million for the industry annually.”
It’s easy to criticise for being behind the curve, but the fact remains that any promotion for this delicious protein should be applauded, particularly when the meat industry remains under such constant scrutiny.