DA unit promotes comm’l goat meat

Seeing the growth potential of goat meat, the Department of Agriculture’s Bureau of Agricultural Research is pushing for the commercialization of more chevon products.

Chevon or goat meat is a common dish in the rural areas. Various celebrations often include specialty cooked goat dishes such as kaldereta, kilawin, pinapaitan and sinampalokan.

The Isabela State University - Cagayan Valley Small Ruminants Center (ISU-CVSRRC) in Echague, Isabela has developed various products from chevon which are now packed into canned and microwavable meals capturing a wider scale of the Filipino market.

Among the canned chevon products include Goat’s Happy Feet, Chevon Curry, Chevon Mechado, Chili-garlic Chevon and Pounded Chevon with filings; while the readyto-eat products include chevon meatballs and classic dip, chevon with white sausage toppings, and chevon ribs with chestnut sauce.

“Canning was conducted to preserve the food for one year or more. By doing so, chevon products can reach global markets, such as the Middle East wherein demand for goat is high,” said Jonathan Nayga, director of CVSRRC who also serves as the project leader.

Nayga said goat meat production is regarded as the principal function of goat raising among developing countries. In the Philippines, the province of Isabela is dominated by

Ilokanos who are known to be “goat-eating” people.

Consumer demand for goat has grown in recent years as Filipinos become conscious about the food they eat, the impact it has on their bodies and the processes used to produce it.

While poultry has always been touted as the leaner, healthier alternative to beef and pork, goat outshines them all. It is low in fat, cholesterol, calories and saturated fat.

Chevon can be consumed fresh, chilled, or frozen.

Saturated fats increase the risk of acquiring cardiovascular diseases while unsaturated fats help improve blood cholesterol levels and lower the risk of having heart diseases.

Goat meat also has high levels of iron and protein when compared to equal serving sizes of chicken, beef and pork.

In 2014, BAR funded the technology transfer of chevon product processing and commercialization of new chevon products under the National Technology Commercialization Program (NTCP) in a bid to capture the exquisite tastes of those living in the urban areas and help goat raisers as well.

Region 2 has implemented various R&D projects encomThe passing the whole productionto-processing cycle since 2006.

Goat raising is an ideal livelihood option for farmers in the rural areas since goat raising requires low capital and can makes use of locally available forages and grasses.

Moreover, the current demand for chevon in the international markets has also encouraged local producers to raise more,” Nayga said.

Based on the computed return on investment (ROI), all chevon products have a positive profitability with chevon meatballs having the highest ROI at 62.32 percent among the processed chevon sold in meal boxes.

ISU has tapped Agricomponent Co., a private company, to be the exclusive franchisee of Chevon Valley.

Agricomponent is responsible for the manufacture and distribution of products nationwide. All products undergo proximate analysis to make products ready for commercialization.