Goats' Milk formula for success

A Hawke's Bay Dairy goat industry is a market-driven proposition says Business Hawke's Bay. PHOTO/BRIAN LAUER

An early-move advantage is on offer in a Hawke's Bay goat milk infant-formula industry.
Regional economic development agency Business Hawke's Bay (BHB) is driving a project to establish the industry in Hawke's Bay.

BHB food and beverage programme manager Catherine Rusby has been investigating the opportunity for eight months and has assembled 11 presenters for a one-day conference in Napier on July 2.

She said at first she was sceptical, when told Hawke's Bay would be ideal for the industry, until approached by infant-formula processors looking to build their own capability, because existing spray dryers were fully booked.

BHB aims to capture the value chain for the region: Breeding, raising, milking, processing, packaging and exporting.

"We have a market-driven aspect - I don't believe in build-it-and-they-will-come," she said.
"We have the market established and we have it mooted the processing capability could come here. If we pull apart the value chain every aspect can be done here. The conference will present the value chain - right from the global market all the way through to the farm - and demonstrate this is something we can do.

"What's going out of the port is a market-ready product. This is completely an overseas play.

"It is scalable, sustainable and the global demand for both sheep and goat dairy products is skyrocketing.

"We already have the dairy farms here, we are just working on filling in the blanks. There are lots of clever people here in the Bay that are good businesspeople and entrepreneurs.
"We see growth opportunities for existing businesses, servicing the rural sector as well as new initiatives from this value-added industry."

Infant intolerance to cow milk is a common problem and there is a burgeoning world market for alternatives, particularly in South-east Asia.
Goat milk is rich in protein, calcium and vitamins and is easier to digest than cow's milk, making it an alternative milk source for infants and an alternative for those allergic to cow milk.

It is not a new path for New Zealand - Hamilton-based Dairy Goat Co-operative developed the world's first goat milk-based products for infants in 1988 and exceeded $150 million turnover in 2014.

A report commissioned by BHB said it could generate $1.5 billion for the region over the next 10 years, creating 178 jobs. By 2024 the total value-add contribution could equate to 9 per cent of agricultural GDP and 30 per cent of pastoral farming GDP. Further information and market activities already under way in the region will be detailed at the conference.

Hastings farmers David Phillips and Lydia Baty have converted 41ha of sheep and beef farm to goat farming and plan to be milking 650 by August.
The former McCain sweetcorn and pea suppliers said a sheep and beef farm was not viable for them, but the business case for goat farming stacked up.
He estimated the gross return would be 10 times greater per ha than sheep and beef.
"You can see what you've achieved every day - you can see the milk in the vat," she said.

The conference, at the Napier War Memorial Conference Centre, is open to anyone.
Ms Rusby said rural support services and industries keen to get an early-move advantage would attend.

It was a long-term proposition.
"Our aim is to show those attending where the business opportunities are, so they can go away and do the due diligence to determine if it is right for them.
"It's an opportunity for the region to add another string to its bow that will create jobs, both on farm and at a more technical production level. It could provide marginal farming operations with a viable alternative, and provide supporting businesses more growth opportunities.