الماعز السوداني

Sudanese Goats/Meat Production

Goat meat is widely accepted in rural areas of the Sudan but is not so popular(especially that of mature goat) in urban areas. Goat meat usually fetches less price than mutton and beef.

Two types of meats are produced from goats: the popular kid meat and mature animal meat (Chevon).The rate of growth during rearing has important bearing on the quality of kid’s meat. Milk production of does influences preweaning growth rate of kids. Daily gains of 56 to 80 g were reported for Nubian male kids during rearing. Live weights of 7.78 , 23.3 , 17.4 and 22.4 kg were reported for growing Nubian kids at 3,6,9 and 12 months of age. Daily gains between 3-12 months old ranged from 45 to 59 g/day.

Feedlot performance of Sudan desert goats on complete diets, in confinement, was not satisfactory. Male Sudan Desert goats averaging 20 kg live weight gained only 2.6 kg in 8 weeks when fed ad libitum on concentrates. Similarly overall feedlot gains of Sudan Desert male goats in 120 days on diets containing sorghum Stover or groundnut hulls in addition to molasses was 1.9 and 1.5 kg , respectively.

Several reports have confirmed the difficulty of managing goats in confinement. Comparative feedlot performance of Desert sheep (24 kg initial feedlot weight ) and goat (16 kg initial feedlot weight) fed freely for two months on a diet containing dura (sorghum) , wheat bran, cottonseed cake , groundnut hulls and salt was studied. Sheep made faster gains and were more efficient feed converters than goats. Sheep ate more feed (as a proportion of body weight) than goats. Apparently the type of diet is more important in the feeding of goats than for sheep.

Data on body composition of goats show that the dressing percentage of 35 kg heavy mature Desert buck was 54%on empty body weight basis; that of kids weighing 12-14 kg live weight ranged from 42 to 49 units .The proportion of bone in carcasses of Desert kids was high (27-35%) and that of mature Desert male goat averaged 25%. Muscle: bone ratio was low (1.6:1 to 2.2:1)

It is probably informative to provide data on comparative carcass composition of Sudan desert goats and sheep. Studies have shown that at an equally adjusted empty body weight Sudan Desert Sheep dressed higher (51.5%) than Sudan desert goats (47.6%).This result was partly ascribed to higher alimentary tract, omentum and mesenteric fat percentages; and a lower carcass fat percentage in goats than sheep. Goats had more developed forelimb and neck+ thorax muscles but less developed hind limb muscles than sheep. Subcutaneous fat was poorly developed but visceral fat more developed in goat than sheep. Sheep deposited more fat in the tail than goats. The proportion of bone in desert goat carcass was high and averaged 25% in carcasses weighing 15 kg. Regarding meat quality research results have shown that Desert goats had thicker muscle fibers; less chemical (inramuscular) fat but more protein in the muscular tissue than Desert sheep. Moreover, goats tended to have a higher proportion of unsaturated oleic acid in their fat depots.

The above average protein content of goat meat and the low price of goat meat in Sudan make the goat potentially well suited for enhancing protein needs of low income groups. Moreover, the high protein low fat content (with a high proportion of unsaturated fat) of goat meat makes it more suitable for health oriented individuals and those on restricted calorie intake.