Kerala varsity develops new goat breed

Kerala Agricultural University (KAU) has successfully developed a new strain of goats which can be reared in humid tropical climate of the state.

The success in developing the new strain is the offshoot of a post-graduate research project undertaken by the university scientists 10 months back. and is expected to give a major boost to the goat-meat production in the state.

Claiming that the results so far are highly encouraging and the success achieved would revolutionise Kerala's goat farming sector, KAU research scientist P Nandakumar said, "Non-availability and high cost of land coupled with the slow growing goat strains currently available to farmers had resulted in poor returns to farmers. Naturally goat farming and the goat-meat segment remained stagnant in the state so far."

The newly developed strain was a combination of local Malabari, Swiss Alpine and the famous South African breed Boer.

This new combination reaches a body weight of 12.5 kg in three months and 20 kg by six months compared to 4.5 and 8-10 kg respectively in Malabari goats.

The average per day increase in weight recorded by the new variety is 40 gm as against 20 gm per day by the local Malabari variety.

Under intensive management pre-weaning, mortality averaged at six per cent in the new variety and 12 per cent in Malabari, Nandakumar pointed out.

He said the news strain is expected to have tropical adaptability and prolificacy of the South African giant goat Boer and the Malabari breeds. It will be endowed with mothering ability and growth of Alpine and Boer.

Maintaining that it is not economical to keep the slow-growing local varieties beyond nine months by which time they reach the weight of 12 kg on an average, he said the new variety would reach the weight of 30 kg within nine months at the same quantity of fodder intake.

So if even a small percentage of the local varieties are replaced with the new one, the extra quantity of meat generated will be quite substantial.

At the same time, they will have all the qualities of the local varieties, including low climatic stress, good resistance to diseases and adaptability to local available fodder.

J Abraham, former head of KAU's meat technology unit said, "Attempts by a private firm in Andhra Pradesh in the past to develop a fast growing meat goat strain has failed to achieve the desired result due to inadequate infrastructure, technical expertise and research backing. In all these respects the university farm is well equipped and therefore the farm is the right place to carry on the research successfully."

Recalling from his experience in Botswana, where he had a two-year assignment as the Principal of the UN sponsored International Training Centre for Meat Technology, Abraham said the improved South African Boer goats are in many respects suitable for India.

But importing them to the country will be highly expensive. While a matured Boer in Botswana costs between Rs 2, 000 and Rs 3, 000. However, when it is imported to India, it costs not less than Rs 25,000.

Therefore, finding a solution to our problem internally was inevitable for the development and growth of the goat meat industry.

Abraham pointed out that a serious risk involved in importing goat and other cattle is that along with the animals we also import the diseases found in Western countries. These imported diseases being not common in India, we are ill-equipped to provide effective treatment.

Non availability of meat strain of goats had been a major stumbling block in the development of meat goat industry in Kerala, said Nandakumar.

There exists a potentially tremendous marketing opportunity for the goat meat in Europe, North America, Middle East and South East Asia because the emerging and heavy demand for the low fat and red meat alternative among consumers.