Developing more consistent pathways to markets for unmanaged rangeland goats is one recommendation being made by a dedicated steering committee, as South Australia grapples how to deal with growing numbers in its pastoral and outback regions.
Wild goats are currently classified as a pest in South Australia, meaning landholders are required to control numbers.
This is done through a combination of mustering for commercial purposes and culling by landholders and government agencies.
The wild goats are mustered and can be held for six weeks before being removed or destroyed.
Many are sent direct to slaughter or to goat depots and are used for human consumption.
But rising numbers across the arid region meant new ways to manage populations needed to be investigated, according to SA Arid Lands Landscape Board general manager Jodie Gregg-Smith.
Feral animals cause landscape and native animal habitat destruction, as well as increasing grazing competition on livestock enterprises, Ms Gregg-Smith said.
"The purpose of the Rangeland Goat Management Steering Committee is to help land managers find better ways to control and reduce numbers before it becomes a matter of compliance in accordance with the Landscape Act and the Pastoral Act," she said.
The committee consists of several Landscape SA boards, Meat and Livestock Australia, Livestock SA, the Goat Industry Council of Australia and PIRSA.
An economic research study was undertaken to determine the value of unmanaged rangeland goats against the impact they make on land and business, followed by meetings and forums with landholders and industry stakeholders.
"There's an economic rationale that suggests the best way to manage goats is to tap into a commercial harvesting pathway and that has happened reasonably well and has supported pastoral enterprises with opportunistic harvesting over many years," Ms Gregg-Smith said.
"The challenge being is that is fed by the demand for and the value of goat meat.
"The urgency (of the committee's recommendations) has come about now with a plummet in the market and challenges in accessing kill space against the cost of managing them off.
"Pastoralists cannot wait until the market buoys as it will be at the expense of their own grazing businesses and the environment"
Ms Gregg-Smith said evidence showed opportunistic goat harvesting as a stand alone control method was not a sustainable or effective method of reducing numbers without other measures, as demand did not match supply.
While it is difficult to make population estimates due to the goats' transient natures, Ms Gregg-Smith says they could likely number in the hundreds of thousands at times.
Numbers are such that a 35 per cent reduction in population each year would be required to stop goat numbers from increasing, but nearly double that would be needed to meet long-term reduction targets.
Ms Gregg-Smith said the committee was seeking "win-win outcomes" for unmanaged rangeland goats that would recognise their value as a protein source, but also acknowledge the ecological threat they posed.
FUNDING SOUGHT FOR STATE GOAT COORDINATOR
Among the steering committee's recommendations - some of which will rest with industry, some with government and some with Landscape boards - is to appoint a statewide goat coordinator to facilitate efforts across different land uses and regions.
It also wants new holding, harvesting and farming policy options considered across the pastoral zone.
Exploring innovative uses for goat meat to reduce wastage are also being recommended as a path forward, given the current market doesn't impact the goat population enough.
Another recommendation made by the committee is to use stronger wording to make clear pastoralists' responsibility to manage numbers by including 'destruction' alongside 'control' in any new compliance and enforcement policy.
MANAGED GOAT TRIALS FLOATED
Growing out smaller unmanaged rangeland goats on designated paddocks on pastoral properties, or moving them to freehold land to gain weight, could be trials worth considering as future management strategies.
This is the view of the Livestock SA representative on the Unmanaged Goat Steering Committee Andrew Smith.
Under current legislation, wild goats can't be released and smaller animals not suitable for processing have to be destroyed, but Mr Smith said there were many enterprises in the eastern states who utilised these animals by growing them out.
"A possible outcome is to do some trials to see how goats could be managed differently in SA, like running part of a property or an entire property as a managed goat operation," he said.
"In NSW and QLD some properties do regular mustering, taking out nearly all the bucks of processable size and enough does to prevent overgrazing.
"A mob of mostly breeding does and kids at foot will have a smaller DSE footprint and produce lots of well fed and fast growing goats in a more sustainable way."
Mr Smith said the goat industry was keen to continue working with all stakeholders to develop better ways to manage rangeland goat numbers and their impacts.
"A strong and sustainable goat industry requires environmental and economic sustainability and a strong social licence," he said.
"I'm optimistic the steering committee will achieve some meaningful win-win outcomes in the next 24 months, especially with the new rangeland goat coordinator role being developed."
Mr Smith said prices didn't need to be high to make harvested rangeland goats worth transporting to a depot and even with goat prices on the wane last year, many pastoralists were still doing "the right thing" by mustering and destroying animals or "selling at cost" to protect their landscape.
Data from Meat and Livestock Australia shows close to 2.5 million goats were slaughtered nationally in 2023, a 41 per cent increase on 2022, despite lower prices.
Mr Smith said rain leading to good breeding conditions was likely the major factor in a population boom in SA.
