This is our son with our newest project on the farm. It has been an adventure that the whole family has enjoyed.

With large corporations taking over Iowa farmland, small farmers have to come up with new ways to become self-sufficient. One of the ways that is becoming popular is raising goats. A big factor for the goat market is the large number of ethnic groups who have settled in Iowa. Did you know that goat is the most highly consumed meat in the world and more goat’s milk is consumed worldwide than cow’s milk? Like goat’s milk and cheese, its meat is leaner than many other red meats. And in today’s health conscious society there is a demand for meats with less fat.

Where resources are limited, a small herd of goats may be the only livestock that a small part-time farmer can raise to achieve self-sufficiency. Goats can adapt well to Iowa’s environment, and they are efficient converters of low-quality forages, which make them an effective biological herbicide for controlling weeds and nuisance shrubs. This allows them to survive conditions that cows and sheep can’t. Seeing goats like ours might soon become a common sight on the rural Iowa landscape.