TWENTY FARMERS in southeastern Clarendon are currently participating in a revolving Sheep and Goat Project aimed at improving the quantity and quality of local goat meat.
The farmers are from the communities of Portland Cottage, Mitchell Town, Moores, Rosewell, Bois Content and Hayes Savannah.
Jasmine Holness, deputy director of Livestock Research in the Ministry of Agriculture, explained that "The project is aimed at improving the genetic stock in the country through improvement of the animals at the research location, generating new breeding stock for new and existing farmers, and training farmers in sheep and goat production."
SURVEY
Mrs. Holness said the project also involves a survey on sheep and goat enterprises in Jamaica. This, she said, was done to assist the ministry to increase the sheep and goat population by about 15 per cent over the three years.
Parish manager of the Rural Agricultural Development Authority (RADA) in Clarendon, Percival Shaw, explained that each farmer was given a ewe and two bucks for breeding. "The programme is being done on a revolving basis, where we have started the programme with these farmers and after they have benefited, they will hand over the first female kid to another farmer," he explained.
FEMALE GOATS
In the event that the ewe does not produce a female, then the male will be sold and the money used to purchase a ewe for another beneficiary farmer, he explained. Some 140 female goats have already been distributed, while another 25 males, comprising Nubian and Boer cross-breeds, are to be distributed.
Mr. Shaw pointed out that the importation of goat meat has been very high and the programme is geared at reducing the level of importation.
PROJECT COST
Mrs. Holness noted that the project would cost about $50 million over a three-year period. She said the project commenced at the beginning of this financial year.
Based on estimates done by the Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO) in 2003, the goat population is about 440,000 while the sheep population is about 2,000.
