**4. Goat production in the world**

**Figure 3** shows the global distribution of goat production between 1994 and 2014 [10]. In the last two decades, we can see that the geographic areas with the largest goat production are located in the global African continent, in a range from Southeastern Europe (Greece and Turkey) to South Asia (India and China), passing through the Arabian Peninsula and, in the American Continent, where the highlight goes to Mexico, Brazil, and Argentina.

The production of small ruminants is largely rooted in some world regions, for both historical and religious reasons. This is the case in all Muslim countries where pork is not a food option, as also in the case in India where beef is also out of the food tradition, in both cases due to religion.

Soil and climatic matters greatly condition the animal species produced, benefiting goat production in poorer areas in terms of forage capacity and enhancing this species in areas with steep slopes and mountainous rocky areas. Sometimes goat production is the only possible, due to the excellent adaptability of these animals to the difficult mountain conditions. On the Goat System Productions: Advantages and Disadvantages to the Animal, Environment and Farmer http://dx.doi.org/10.5772/intechopen.70002 355

**Figure 3.** Global distribution of goats by country in number of heads [11].

According to the majority of the authors, the enormous variety of breeds (although much smaller than that of the ovine species) is grouped by their area of dispersion in three large groups or trunks: the European, *Ovis capra europaea*; the Asian, *Ovis capra asian*; and the African, *Ovis capra africana*. The European trunk belonged to *C. aegagrus*, the Asian trunk to *C. falconeri* and *C. prisca*, and the African trunk to *Capra nubiana*, another ancestral species. Some authors consider *C. aegagrus*, the only ascendant of domestic goats or the main progenitor. This one has

The identification of the geographic origins and ancestral forms of the current goats has been subjective, since the scarcity of data requires extensive speculative exercises of considerable controversy. Theories that have broader consensus suggest that the origin of goats lies in a set of primitive goat populations that have evolved in the arid and mountainous regions of Central Asia and Southeast Asia. Unlike the sheep, goat migrations allowed their spread to the Southern Europe and to the Northern Africa without having populated the American

Goats do not have as many breeds as sheep, and unlike them, they easily adapt to the harsh environments if they have the opportunity. Like the sheep, goats were probably among the first animals to be domesticated by man. These animals are also considered to be one of the first helpers of man, for in addition to providing manure, skins, hair for cloths and shelters,

The goat must have been domesticated at the same time as the sheep in the East during the Neolithic period about 7000 BC, and traces of this species are found in the lacustrine cities of Western Europe, as well as in archaeological evidence and in excavations of the neolithic

**Figure 3** shows the global distribution of goat production between 1994 and 2014 [10]. In the last two decades, we can see that the geographic areas with the largest goat production are located in the global African continent, in a range from Southeastern Europe (Greece and Turkey) to South Asia (India and China), passing through the Arabian Peninsula and, in the

The production of small ruminants is largely rooted in some world regions, for both historical and religious reasons. This is the case in all Muslim countries where pork is not a food option, as also in the case in India where beef is also out of the food tradition, in both cases due to

Soil and climatic matters greatly condition the animal species produced, benefiting goat production in poorer areas in terms of forage capacity and enhancing this species in areas with steep slopes and mountainous rocky areas. Sometimes goat production is the only possible, due to the excellent adaptability of these animals to the difficult mountain conditions. On the

American Continent, where the highlight goes to Mexico, Brazil, and Argentina.

long horns and is still found in the mountains of southwestern Asia [5].

he gave to the primitive man meat and milk for food [9].

**4. Goat production in the world**

continent [8].

354 Goat Science

places.

religion.

other hand, forest grazing is an excellent productive alternative, associating in an integrated way the forest and animal productions. It helps to control unwanted weed growth with a consequent strong reduction of fire risk and, on the other hand, is often a valuable complement to the farmer or forest producer income, while it also helps to fertilize forest soils with their waste. To confirm this evidence, we can also verify in **Figure 4** that goat production reaches high levels in the most important forest and mountain areas.

In **Figure 5**, we can see similar results to those in **Figure 4**, but here we can see the distribution by animal density, in number of heads per km2 . Here we find the highest values in Mexico, northeastern Brazil, sub‐Saharan tropical strip, India, and Eastern China.

**Figure 5** shows that, only in the referred 20 years, the world goat population (from which there is a register) go from slightly over 600 million head in 1994 to over 1 billion in 2014, 67% rise in just two decades, much higher than the world population growth in the same period, which was about 28.5% [12].

The Asian continent clearly leads the world goat production between 1994 and 2014, a percentage well above the sum of the non‐Asian world goat production (**Figure 6**). Then, we can find the African continent with about a third of the total, and finally, with very low percentage values, we have America, Europe, and Oceania, in this order, which make up, in total, about 7% of global goat production.

These figures complement and confirm those reported in **Figure 4**, where sub‐Saharan Africa, China, and India showed their worldwide leadership in the production of this species.

to increase. At the same time, consumption of goat cheese should also increase in developed countries. This is attributed to the image of goat cheese as a product obtained under natural conditions when compared to cow's milk and its products, obtained from more industrialized

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Government programs to support goat rearing should focus on research and training on genetic improvement, farm management, infectious disease control, product collection and

Unfortunately and unfairly, the dairy goat is still considered in some regions as the cow of the poor. In proportional terms to its size and feed intake, the milk yield of the goat is often remarkable. The goat has a reduced food intake, its feeding is cheap, it is a small animal and easy to keep, and each goat produces enough milk to feed an average family. Comparatively, and due to its size, the cow has very high maintenance costs and is more difficult to maintain

Dairy goats produce about 15.2 million tonnes of milk, representing about 2% of the world's total milk produced by livestock species [13]. Developing countries, particularly in Asia and Africa, account for about 83% of the total value produced. In Europe, dairy goat farming is the main reason for goat production, where only 3% of the world goat population produces about 15% of the global goat milk, mostly for cheese production [14]. Spain, France, and Greece are the main European producers of goat's milk. In France, the development of research and development in the dairy goat sector has been intensified with programs organized for the selection, processing, and commercialization of goat's milk, mainly produced from the Saanen and Alpine breeds. In France, it is where the highest production figures per

animal are achieved, whereas Iran has the lowest values.

**Figure 6.** Evolution of world goat production between 1994 and 2014 [10].

farms.

at home.

marketing markets [3].

**4.1. Milk production**

**Figure 4.** Worldwide distribution of caprine by country, in animal density [10].

**Figure 5.** Evolution of world production of goats between 1994 and 2014 [10].

Goats are mainly grown to produce milk, meat, or fiber. Usually, the primary production is meat and milk, and there is little global information on fiber production.

The potential of goats for the sustainable supply of milk and meat for human consumption is unquestionable, and their contribution to improve the nutrition of rural populations is likely

**Figure 6.** Evolution of world goat production between 1994 and 2014 [10].

to increase. At the same time, consumption of goat cheese should also increase in developed countries. This is attributed to the image of goat cheese as a product obtained under natural conditions when compared to cow's milk and its products, obtained from more industrialized farms.

Government programs to support goat rearing should focus on research and training on genetic improvement, farm management, infectious disease control, product collection and marketing markets [3].

#### **4.1. Milk production**

Goats are mainly grown to produce milk, meat, or fiber. Usually, the primary production is

The potential of goats for the sustainable supply of milk and meat for human consumption is unquestionable, and their contribution to improve the nutrition of rural populations is likely

meat and milk, and there is little global information on fiber production.

**Figure 5.** Evolution of world production of goats between 1994 and 2014 [10].

**Figure 4.** Worldwide distribution of caprine by country, in animal density [10].

356 Goat Science

Unfortunately and unfairly, the dairy goat is still considered in some regions as the cow of the poor. In proportional terms to its size and feed intake, the milk yield of the goat is often remarkable. The goat has a reduced food intake, its feeding is cheap, it is a small animal and easy to keep, and each goat produces enough milk to feed an average family. Comparatively, and due to its size, the cow has very high maintenance costs and is more difficult to maintain at home.

Dairy goats produce about 15.2 million tonnes of milk, representing about 2% of the world's total milk produced by livestock species [13]. Developing countries, particularly in Asia and Africa, account for about 83% of the total value produced. In Europe, dairy goat farming is the main reason for goat production, where only 3% of the world goat population produces about 15% of the global goat milk, mostly for cheese production [14]. Spain, France, and Greece are the main European producers of goat's milk. In France, the development of research and development in the dairy goat sector has been intensified with programs organized for the selection, processing, and commercialization of goat's milk, mainly produced from the Saanen and Alpine breeds. In France, it is where the highest production figures per animal are achieved, whereas Iran has the lowest values.

China has the largest number of goats in the world, but they are bred mainly for meat production. Milk production by milk breed occupies the third place, behind France and Spain. According to China's official statistics, there are between 1.4 and 5.8 million dairy goats producing about 0.3 million tons of milk [13, 15]. The statistics on these goats can be questioned because they are not based on actual censuses, and knowledge of the number of dairy goats is even more difficult [15].

Finally, there has to be made a strong commitment to organized programs of genetic improve-

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The increase in goat meat consumption has been occurring in some parts of the world due to the migrations of people who prefer goat meat to the developed countries. This recent fact has

Goat production systems, like other production systems, are not just a combination of crops and animals with the aim of achieving short‐term results. They represent a set of interacting elements, managed by the farmer, according to their objectives. The farmer will define the objectives influenced by the social environment in which he is inserted, his degree of technical

Several authors consider that the general and strategic management approaches are applicable to agricultural enterprises and those who apply them are more successful [22, 23]. The application of strategic management concepts helps to design the way the farmer will achieve the objectives, and it is convenient to know the strengths and weaknesses, the opportunities

A caprine production system has production subsystems, whose performance influences the overall results, for example, the forage system; if there are nutrient deficiencies in the soil, its

The increase in the meat and milk ruminant production has been much greater than the increase in the pasture area, mainly because this increase was due to the increase of mixed or landless production systems (intensive systems) than to the pastoral or extensive

Increasing livestock production to provide food to the growing human population has increased the potential to cause environmental problems, and the balance between the environment and livestock production is now a concern. It is important to avoid an increase of grazing land and arable land for crops production to feed the animals, with the consequent reduction of areas of natural vegetation, soil and air contamination. Overgrazing also leads to several bad consequences like high amounts of animal excretions and overuse of natural pastures with low productivity and with high risk of soil degradation, especially in the arid

The terms equilibrium, disequilibrium, and nonequilibrium are commonly used and can be understood by equilibrium when the animal population and forage resources are under stable climatic conditions. Otherwise, climatic variations disturb the system, causing disequilibrium, which differs from nonequilibrium, represented by modifications in vegetation due to changes in the proportion in the plant species or where the dynamics of the animal population

production is lower, and then, the animals may not have adequate feed to their needs.

ment, market analysis, and marketing channels [18].

increased demand for goat meat in these areas [19].

**5. Characteristics of goat production systems**

knowledge, and the available production factors [20, 21].

and semiarid regions of the tropics and subtopics [26–28].

and the threats [24, 25].

systems [26].

At the global level, interest in dairy goats has steadily increased, and in less than two decades, milk production has grown from around 10 million tons in 1990 to about 15.2 million tons in 2008. In developing countries, goat milk production has continued to grow partly due to a trend toward self‐sufficiency of rural populations, where goat milk is the nutrition basis of millions of people. In these regions, milk is largely consumed raw but can also be processed into a wide variety of products for better preservation and commercialization. We can say that the global marketing of goat's milk is still at a very early stage, and so far, there has been no large‐scale effort to professionalize this industry, exception for some developed countries. According to Refs. [15, 16], the marketing rate of goat's milk at the global level does not exceed 5%.

There are still many obstacles to achieve the professional level of production and sale of goat's milk. Access to productive data to enable the development of breeding programs is very scarce, and on the other hand, reproductive and productive seasonality, which is very marked in some breeds, prevents a constant supply of milk demanded by markets [17]. In sum, there are consumers for goat dairy products and there is enough production to meet this demand, but there is a lack of bridges between both sides in order to enhance this market in terms of an efficient marketing of the product toward profitable industry [3].

#### **4.2. Meat production**

Goat meat is widely consumed in developing countries. Of the approximately 280 million total tonnes of meat consumed per year, goat meat accounts for only 2% of this total, about 4.9 million tonnes [13]. Developing countries produced approximately 97% of this amount, reflecting the great importance of goat meat to feed these populations. China leads the world production of goat meat, representing 38% of the total. As we could see in milk production, also in goat meat production the Asian and African continents are leading. As in milk production, the increase was also notable in the same 18 years of comparative production and raised from the 2.65 million tonnes of goat meat produced in 1990 to 4.93 million in 2008. Most of this meat is not commercialized but is produced and consumed locally [3].

The goat meat business is not already become profitable on an industrial basis. It is not enough to know the proper management techniques, but nowadays it is also essential to control the market and the economic limiting factors for farming success, as well as the financial management and marketing techniques. In addition, there are an increasing number of challenges associated with meat production, including knowledge of regional preferences and consumer education for consumption. In the production and processing sector, producers have to undergo training programs, and slaughter and processing facilities have to be modernized. Finally, there has to be made a strong commitment to organized programs of genetic improvement, market analysis, and marketing channels [18].

The increase in goat meat consumption has been occurring in some parts of the world due to the migrations of people who prefer goat meat to the developed countries. This recent fact has increased demand for goat meat in these areas [19].
