1. GREY BRUCE GOAT DAY:
Issues and Update
January 9, 2015

2. STRATEGIC DIRECTIONS
 OG currently has three main strategic directions as
identified by the Goat Industry Committee:
 Consumer marketing and promotions
 Industry Communications
 Cost of Production
 Challenge for the organization has been what about
everything else? i.e. scrapie, antimicrobial
resistance and welfare

3. BEST MANAGEMENT PRACTICES
 All licensed dairy goat
producers and OG members
will have received the
manual

4. CONSUMER RESEARCH
 Research projects are the foundation of future
promotion programs
 Benchmarking consumer usage and attitudes
towards goat milk and milk products (not just
cheese) to identify challenges and opportunities
 Focus groups completed; retail interviews completed
 Consumer barriers are not taste or price but availability
and awareness
 Ethnic meat study
 Foodservice/broader public Service benchmarking
study which includes hospitals, government
cafeterias, colleges and universities

5. CONSUMER COMMUNICATIONS
 Goat milking demonstrations at the RAWF
 Exhibitor in the Ontario Pavilion at the Delicious
Food Show
 Sampled goat cheese and distributed recipes
 Promoted the show via email distribution list and
website
 Partnering with DFO to develop an artisanal cheese
program for Ontario cheese
 Only cow and goat; sheep is not licensed

6. COST OF PRODUCTION STUDY
 Final month of the “pilot study” for on-farm data
collection
 Collaboration with DFO on the development of the
COP model and data collection with 3rd party
accounting firm
 Industry steering committee
 Submitted funding proposal for 3 years of data
collection; expand to 20 farms; establish
benchmarking
 2015-2016-2017

7. INDUSTRY COMMUNICATIONS
 Participated at the Outdoor Farm Show to meet
with new producers and members
 Hosted workshops with EastGen- two locations
 Weekly email updates to all members with email
 Website revamp www.ontariogoat.ca
 OG Board updates to members & Alliance
magazine
 Attend a number of meetings on your behalf
 Premier’s Summit on Agri-Food, Foreign Animal
Disease, Scrapie updates, Foodland Ontario, etc.

8. Websites
www.ontariogoat.ca
www.ontariogoatcheese.ca

9. HOT GOAT ISSUES TO WATCH
 Animal identification and traceability
 Changes coming to federal regulations 2015/2016
 OG is being proactive rather than reactive
 Completed two tag trials
 Established a traceability committee
 Lobbying for an administrator for the tags
 More information at the AGM Feb. 25, 2015

10. HOT GOAT ISSUES TO WATCH
 Biosecurity and On farm food safety programs
 Pressure from government to implement on-farm food
safety programs in particular on the dairy goat sector
 Most commodities have and implement ofn-farm food
safety programs

11. HOT GOAT ISSUES TO WATCH
 Disease management, eradication protocols, testing
 Production limiting; resulting in economic impact
 GF2 application to develop protocols and certification
program
 CAE
 Working on a GF2 funding proposal that will help develop a
standardized CAE eradication protocol-customized to your
farm
 Sellers to comply with CAE testing-buyer assurances
 OMAFRA and U of G partner on development of project
 Scrapie
Continue to work and communicate with government

12. HOT GOAT ISSUES TO WATCH
 Cost of Production
 Moving out of a niche market into commodity market-
volumes will drive sales; room for growth but at what price?
 Disease prevention and ways to reduce cost of production

13. HOT GOAT ISSUES TO WATCH
 Consumer education and promotion
 Healthy choices, new markets, expansion on farm
 Animal welfare perceptions and reality
 Producer and consumer related issues
 Are we “camera ready?”
 Access to livestock medicines, extra label use,
antimicrobial resistance
 Young farmer entrants, sector expansion, access to
financing
 Scrapie in goats-genotype testing not herd
euthanasia

14. THANK YOU
 Questions, comments, suggestions please feel free
to contact me at anytime:
Tel: 519-824-2942
Email: kkeels@livestockalliance.ca