If you recently added goats to your farm or are considering adding some to your homestead, you may wonder how much profit they yield.
How much a goat farmer makes a year depends on several factors.
Generally speaking, goats yield a decent profit compared to their overhead costs.
Depending on the feed cost and market price for goat milk, a farmer makes about $6000 annually per goat. Goat milk sells for an average of $12 per gallon, and a goat produces about 2 gallons a day for 284 lactating days a year. With overhead costs at $2 per day, a goat yields $6248 annually.
On average, goat farmers make $40,000 total for the year.
When you factor in the low maintenance costs of keeping goats, raising goats for milk and dairy leads to lucrative opportunities.
Those looking into branching out into making cheese or other goat products will increase their profits.
Let’s look into how much a goat farmer makes a year.
How Much Of A Profit Does A Goat Farmer Make?
The amount a goat farmer makes depends on a variety of factors.
On average, a goat yields about $6000 in profit annually.
This is considering the amount of milk a goat produces and the average price of goat milk.
Check out our guide to how much goat milk costs.
The average goat is relatively inexpensive to keep as they are generally low-maintenance animals.
Some pasture to graze, a shelter, clean water, and feed are all they need.
Goat feed, on average, costs about $2 per day.
This varies widely depending on the area you live in.
Some rural communities have access to lower costs for feed.
There is less access to feed in areas where there are not as many farmers, so the costs may be a bit higher than this.
The average market price for a gallon of goat milk is $12 each, but this will also depend on demand in your area.
This also varies based on whether or not you are selling the milk wholesale or on your own.
The average dairy goat produces 2 gallons a day.
Another important factor for determining your potential profit is the breeds of dairy goats.
Certain breeds of goat are more productive when it comes to milk production.
Some breeds of goat also tend to have different periods for lactation.
The average lactation period lasts about 284 days a year.
This means your goat will produce milk for the majority of the year.
When you factor in all the averages and factors, a farmer will make about $6000 annually per goat for milk production.
Related Post: 165+ of the Best Goat Farm Names
The Formula For Goat Farmer Profit
If you want an easy way to determine how much a goat farmer makes, you’ll need to identify a few numbers.
Here are the main components of determining farmer profit in the goat industry:
- The number of goats.
- The number of days your goat lactates annually.
- Amount of milk your goat produces each day.
- The going rate for goat milk per gallon in your area.
- The cost of keeping your goat mostly involves the price of daily feed.
Once you have these numbers, you’ll have everything you need to know how much your goats will profit annually.
Here is how to use these numbers to get an idea of potential profits:
- First, multiply the number of days your goat lactates by the amount of milk per day your goat produces. To get an accurate number, measure the milk as production varies based on the goat breed. This will give you the total gallons of goat milk produced each year.
- Take the total gallons of milk and multiply it by the average price of goat milk in your area. This will give you the gross profits of your goats.
- Next, you’ll multiply the average cost of daily feed by 365 to estimate how much your overhead will be for the goats per year.
- Subtract your overhead from your gross profits to get your net profits.
- Finally, multiply this by the number of dairy goats on your farm to reach a final number.
The Cost Of Keeping A Goat
The cost of keeping a goat varies widely based on the area you live in, as it tends to with any other farm animal.
Location affects the cost of feed and overhead, but it also plays a role in the average sale price you’ll get when it comes time to sell the milk.
Here are some of the costs of keeping goats and basic goat care to consider when determining how much you’ll make from keeping milking goats.
Feed
The highest recurring cost of keeping a goat is the feed.
Goats need to eat quality daily feed and have access to clean water.
Goat feed typically doesn’t cost too much per animal.
The average feed cost works out to $2 per day per goat.
The price of the actual feed varies based on location and the availability of goat feed in your area.
Research the cost of goat feed in your hometown, as it may be very different from the average price.
Shelter
The shelter is usually a one-time cost for keeping a goat.
You may need to make repairs or adjustments over time, but these are relatively low costs for the most part.
A shelter costs as little as $0 if you have materials or a pre-existing shelter.
Goats don’t require much shelter, just something to keep them out of the elements when adverse weather occurs.
The actual price of the shelter will vary based on the design, materials, and size.
Veterinary Bills
Veterinary costs are a little difficult to account for.
You’ll only be spending money on deworming your goats or the occasional health check most of the time.
Occasionally, some unforeseen medical emergency will result in a hefty vet bill.
It’s hard to plan for animal health, but it helps set a bit aside every month if such a situation should arise.
Where To Sell Goat Milk
To receive a decent profit for your goat milk, you need a place to sell it.
Finding a place to unload the goat milk of 20 goats may be difficult in some areas, especially if you’re looking to get a premium price.
For this reason, it is important to find the proper place to sell your milk wholesale or straight to customers before investing in a whole herd of dairy goats.
Luckily, its popularity continues to increase as people learn about the health advantages of goat milk.
Farmers Markets
Some areas have farmer’s markets.
In these places, farmers set up their stands and sell their milk.
This is a very profitable way to make money off your goat milk as you are getting retail prices instead of wholesale prices.
There is a bit more leg work involved in running a farmers market stand as you have to sell to customers and set up each week to get the revenue.
Local Grocery Stores
The demand for goat milk continues to rise as people taste its deliciousness.
Many people who are allergic to cow milk or other dairy products opt for the safer alternative of goat milk.
For this reason, there are an increasing number of grocery stores carrying goat milk.
Even big grocery store chains are looking to incorporate products from local farms to carry in their locations.
Reaching out to grocery stores in your area may lead to a lucrative wholesale opportunity for you to sell your goat milk.
Roadside Stands
Some rural areas have roadside stands for their milk, eggs, and vegetables.
If you live in an area with this, set up a roadside stand letting passersby know you have goat milk for sale.
While this isn’t possible in all areas, it is a good idea for farmers living in an area with good foot traffic.
Other Types Of Goat Products To Sell
In addition to goat milk, there are other types of alternative products from goats for farmers to sell.
If you feel ambitious or creative, there are many other ways to create profitable revenue from keeping adult goats.
Cheese
Goat cheese is incredibly delicious and popular.
Many people use it on sandwiches, in salads, or as a part of various other recipes.
It goes with just about anything.
Making goat cheese is fairly simple once you get the hang of it.
Alternatively, a cheese maker in the area may buy your milk to use in production.
Goat cheese is one way to diversify your products and create more opportunities for profitable revenue from your farm.
The demand for goat cheese has remained high due to its delicious taste.
Soap
You may have heard of goat milk soap.
It is very gentle and moisturizing, and many people love to use it.
It is easy to make soap from goat’s milk with a little creativity and time.
One major benefit of making goat milk soap is its shelf life.
The soap lasts for a much longer period than milk or cheese, so you will have it to sell for much longer after.
Yogurt
Goat milk yogurt is rising in popularity along with goat milk in general.
Yogurt is made with culture and easy to whip up once you get it.
This is another way to diversify your potential profits as a goat farmer.
Meat
Goat meat is another option for older milking goats.
It is another way to make money off your goats once they are past their prime lactating years.
Raising goats for meat is a bit different, but you’ll still make some money off some cuts of goat.
In some places, the demand for goat meat is quite high.
This makes raising meat goats very lucrative.
Related: Why is goat meat expensive?
