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Dairy Sheep a Publication of ATTRA - National Sustainable Agriculture Information Service • 1-800-346-9140 • ATTRA Dairy Sheep A Publication of ATTRA - National Sustainable Agriculture Information Service • 1-800-346-9140 • www.attra.ncat.org By Margo Hale and The sale of sheep milk or milk products is often more profitable than selling only lamb or wool. This Linda Coffey publication explores the dairy sheep business and helps producers decide whether it is a viable option NCAT Agriculture for their farms. Regulations governing the industry are discussed. Also addressed are production issues, Specialists animal health, stock selection, and nutrition issues surrounding dairy sheep. References and resources ©2006 NCAT follow the narrative. Contents Introduction ..................... 1 Getting Help .................... 2 Getting Started ............... 2 Labor ..............................2 Marketing ..................... 3 Processing ....................3 Regulations ..................4 Budgeting .................... 5 Production Notes ........... 6 Selecting Stock ...........6 Lacaune dairy sheep. Photo by Yves Berger, courtesy of University of Wisconsin Spooner Ag Research Center. Nutrition ....................... 7 Milking ...........................7 Introduction the time and effort to learn about product development and marketing. Production Records ..8 prospective dairy-sheep producer Health ............................ 8 faces many potential challenges. First Sheep exhibit a natural ability to efficiently Conclusion ......................10 Aof all, any dairy operation requires process forage into meat, milk, and wool. References ...................... 12 a high degree of management skill. Rais- To best take advantage of these traits, good Resources ........................ 12 ing dairy sheep involves two production grazing strategies must be developed— Contacts ......................12 systems—one for sheep and another for another area of special knowledge and Web Sites ....................12 milk. People who haven’t done either will management skills. Associations .............. 13 need time to learn. Additionally, marketing Periodicals/ sheep-milk products is a challenge. While Finally, start-up costs can be high, and it Newsletters ................13 the market for sheep-milk cheese is grow- may take several years to show a profit. Out- Books/ ing, it’s still very small in this country and side income or an extended line of credit Publications ...............13 remains high-risk. may be required to subsidize the operation Suppliers .....................14 at first. Budgets .......................15 Production of sheep-milk cheese is a well- developed enterprise in parts of Europe. With all these concerns in mind, certain But sheep milk cheese production in the positives emerge in sheep dairying. A sheep ATTRA — National Sustainable Agriculture Information Service U.S. was unheard of until about 20 years dairy that delivers consistent products in a is managed by the National Cen- ago, and is still rare. Some areas of the developed market can be far more profit- ter for Appropriate Technology (NCAT) and is funded under a country lack markets for sheep milk. Still, able than an operation focused only on meat grant from the United States some producers process the milk and mar- Department of Agriculture’s production. Sheep are also easier to handle Rural Business-Cooperative Ser- ket it directly to consumers. and less expensive to maintain than cattle. vice. Visit the NCAT Web site (www.ncat.org/agri. Most sheep milk is made into cheese, or into And sheep milk can be frozen and stored html) for more informa- products such as yogurt, ice cream, and for eventual sale as fluid milk or to make tion on our sustainable agriculture projects. ���� soap. Prospective producers must invest into cheese. Getting Help At the end of each section are questions for As you plan a sheep dairy, explore several your consideration. sources of information. The University of Wisconsin Cooperative Extension has pub- Getting Started lished an excellent resource, Principles of Before entering a commercial dairy sheep sheep dairying in North America. This is a business, carefully consider the following comprehensive and up-to-date publication, elements: covering topics such as sheep milk and its • availability of labor uses, choosing a breed, nutrition, milking parlors and equipment, and the econom- • marketing ics of raising dairy sheep. This publication • processing options can be downloaded from the Web at http:// • regulations cecommerce.uwex.edu/pdfs/A3767_Sheep_ Dairying.pdf or be purchased as a CD-ROM • budgeting for $20. To order, visit http://learning • overall economic viability store.uwex.edu. Related ATTRA Another great resource is a publication Have you considered: Publications from the dairy supply company DeLaval, Sustainable Sheep entitled System Solutions for Dairy Sheep. • Am I a dairy person? This book covers breeds, handling, feeding, Production • Is my family interested in the health, and layouts of housing and milk- enterprise? Rotational Grazing ing parlors for dairy sheep. For a free copy, Meeting the contact Tess Wagner at 816-891-1573 or • Where can I find more information? Nutritional Needs of [email protected]. Ruminants on Pasture The Great Lakes Dairy Sheep Symposium is Labor Pastures: Sustainable held each year. The proceedings from these Management Labor is a major concern. Dairy sheep pro- meetings are available at http://www. ducers spend mornings and evenings— Integrated Parasite ansci.wisc.edu/extension-new copy/ seven days a week, week after week—feed- Management for sheep/. The proceedings are an ing, milking, and cleaning up. Do you enjoy Livestock excellent resource and include articles from sheep enough to meet these demands? Is Grass-Based and researchers and producers on topics such as your family supportive of this level of com- Seasonal Dairying new research, new techniques, and practi- cal tips to help producers. mitment? Many dairy producers face frus- tration and burnout after unsuccessful Practical Sheep Dairying, by Olivia Mills, is attempts to hire competent help. A family another resource to explore. It is currently unwilling to help with the business may out of print from the U.S. publisher, but warrant a less demanding enterprise. may be obtained through interlibrary loan or used book services. See the Resources section for additional publications, Web Have you considered: sites, and contacts. In addition to exploring these written mate- • Who will do the milking? rials, a prospective producer needs to • Who will do the farming? investigate the market, visit with other pro- • Who will be in charge of flock health? ducers, and include family members in dis- cussions. The remainder of this publication • Who will help you? How, and how provides a brief overview of the dairy sheep much will you pay them? business to encourage you and your fam- • Who will do construction? ily to consider carefully whether or not the • Who will fix things that break? business suits your family and farm goals. Page 2 ATTRA Dairy Sheep Marketing The biggest demand for sheep cheese is on either coast. As with any other niche prod- If labor is available, the next concern is uct, it takes a lot of effort to develop the marketing. What product or products do you market. Some producers are uncomfortable plan to sell? Is there an unmet demand for with marketing, while others find it excit- that product in your area? If so, what price ing. You may want to read the ATTRA pub- can you realistically expect to receive? Can lications Evaluating an Agricultural Enter- you make a profit at that price? prise, Adding Value to Farm Products, and In the case of fluid milk, a prospective pro- Direct Marketing for more information on ducer must first locate a reliable buyer. Judy this essential part of the business. Kapture, long-time producer and columnist for the Dairy Goat Journal, issues a strong warning to the farmer planning to start a Have you considered: goat dairy, which also applies to those plan- ning to start a sheep dairy. • Where and how will you market the You are certainly wise to be cautious. I can milk? tell far too many stories about people who • What is the market? used all their money to set up their farm Related ATTRA as a goat dairy, and then never did sell any • Where is the market located? Publications milk. Or their milk market fizzled out within • How much will you charge for the Predator Control a year… Get in touch with the (the buyer) to for Sustainable and find out if they actually are planning to buy products? What does the competition Organic Livestock more milk. Learn the details—how much charge? Production milk do they want from a farm, what do they • What kind of advertising will you pay for milk, is winter production a necessity, need? Value-Added Dairy what do they charge for hauling, etc. Options • What will you use to package? How Then talk with some of the people who are will you label? What is your logo? Multi-Species Grazing shipping milk to them now. You want to find out if they feel the pay for the milk is good Dairy Farm enough to make the goatkeeping effort worth- Sustainability while. (Remember that feed and other costs Checksheet vary greatly and a “good milk price” in one Processing Small Ruminant area may be too low for another.) You may get Sustainability some surprises when you ask this question… Some producers choose not to deal with a Checksheet Be cautious about new startups. Sometimes milk buyer and work to increase farm profits they have a lot of enthusiasm but no idea by processing the milk themselves. Diverse Small Ruminant how difficult it will be to market their milk products can offer more income and finan- Resource List or cheese or other product in the quantities cial stability. These products might include they need… Are their patrons shipping milk fluid milk, cheese, yogurt, fudge, sheep- to the buyer now? Talk to them, all of them. Are they getting paid? Is the buyer taking all milk soap or lotions, sheepskins, or meat. the milk he promised he would?... How good Cheese is a good alternative to selling is the market for what they are planning to milk, particularly if you like direct marketing.
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