Goat Product ID Study Guide

When processing a whole carcass, the animal can be broken down into smaller parts to make handling easier. These smaller segments are called primals and they can be further divided into subprimals and then retail cuts. Like lamb, a goat is commonly broken down into five primals: shoulder, rack, loin, breast/foreshank and leg.

The shoulder of the goat will account for almost one-third of the entire carcass weight. The shoulder is generally one of the tougher primals of a goat due to its high collagen content and shorter muscle fibers. Connective tissue is the tissue that supports and binds the other tissues of a body. Some examples of connective tissue are cartilage, tendons, ligaments, bone, and blood. Collagen is the main structural protein in connective tissue. Collagen is tough but when broken down by water molecules (hydrolysis) it becomes a flavorful gelatin. Shoulder roasts, blade chops, and stew meat originate from this primal.

The rack of the goat contains the ribs as well as the fore-end of the longissimus dorsi muscle, which makes this primal a high-value meat cut. The meat on the tips of the ribs can be removed, a process known as Frenching, in order to improve the appearance of the cut. Rack-roast, rib chops, and crown roast originate from this primal.

The loin of the goat contains the hind-end of the longissimus dorsias well as the tenderloin. The loin extends from the thirteenth rib of the animal to the anterior (front) of the pelvis. The flank muscle is generally removed from the loin cut. Loin chops, loin roasts, and the tenderloin originates from this primal.

These two subprimals are removed together on the carcass using a cut that goes from the lower shoulder to through the last rib, remaining parallel to the spine. The foreshank is full of connective tissue and is generally a tougher muscle due to its constant motion. However, the collagen in it also contributes to excellent flavor. The breast contains the sternum, as well as the lower portion of all thirteen ribs. Boned and rolled breast, Denver ribs, and riblets all originate from this primal cut.

The leg of goat contains the sirloin, the entire hind leg, as well as the hind shank. The leg muscles are large and lean due to constant motion. Leg of goat can be prepared bone-in or boneless, which almost always includes the removal of the hind shank. Sirloin steaks, sirloin roasts, leg roasts, leg steaks, and kebabs can all originate from this primal.

Just like all goat breeds produce milk and meat, most breeds also produce a fine fuzzy undercoat (cashmere) that grows in the winter as well as their regular coat of smooth shiny hair. We call the shiny hair “guard hair” because it guards or protects the cashmere and keeps it from splitting in the winter cold.

Most of the highly productive breeds of cashmere goats originate from Central and Eastern Asia. For example, the Liaoning goat in China can produce as much as 2 pounds of cashmere per fleece. However, these goats cannot be imported into the US. Instead, there are no designated breeds of cashmere goats in the U.S. Rather, over the years we have selectively bred for goats that yield more cashmere by importing feral goats from Australia chosen for cashmere and identifying individual dairy goats and Spanish meat goats that produce noticeable amounts of cashmere. Some of our goats can reliably produce a ½ lb. of fiber per fleece but most cashmere goats produce 2 to 4 ounces of cashmere each year. The Cashmere Goat Association is setting up a database to identify individual goats that meet a specific set of criteria regarding fiber and sound, functional conformation.

Cashmere fiber is tightly crimped (rather than wavy), soft, and lacking luster (sheen). In order to be considered cashmere, industry standards require that the fiber be at least 1 ¼ inches long with an average diameter of less than 19 microns. This is very, very thin. For example, a human hair can range from 17 to 181 microns in diameter. The crimpiness of the fiber gives it “loft” and enables garments made of cashmere to provide warmth without weight.

Cashmere is famous for its warmth, softness and lightweight. During the 15th century over 60,000 artisans were employed in the Indian subcontinent making “Kashmir” shawls and scarves for export throughout the known world. Today, luxurious dress suits, sweaters, dresses and even blouses are still made from cashmere.

Raw cashmere (also called greasy cashmere) is a combination of the soft cashmere as well as the coarse outer guard hairs. Goats produce cashmere only part of the year and the growth is dependent on changes in day length. Cashmere grows from the longest day of the year (summer solstice, ~June 21st) until the shortest day of the year (winter solstice, ~Dec 21st). We generally harvest cashmere in the early spring before the goats naturally shed it by combing out the fleece or shearing it. Combed fleeces generally contain less guard hairs than sheared fleeces but take more time and labor.The greasy cashmere must be washed (this process is called “scouring”) to remove dirt, dander and vegetation matter. The guard hairs must be removed from the actual cashmere. Otherwise, the fiber will be itchy and not have the valuable properties of cashmere. We call this process of removing the guard hairs “dehairing”. Dehairing can be done by repeated hand carding to allow the dense hairs to fall away from the softer cashmere or by sending the fleece to a commercial mill that has a dehairing machine. A standard cashmere scarf weighs about 6 ounces so it takes about 3 cashmere goat fleeces to make one scarf!

Mohair comes from the Angora goat (Angora fiber comes from Angora rabbits!). Angora goats originate from Turkey and were first imported into the US in 1849. Mohair is a soft, long, luxurious fiber with a rich “luster” (sheen) that is used in clothing, carpets, blankets and upholstery. Mohair is different from sheep wool in that it has smoother and larger scales, leading to its slippery feel, luster (the smooth scales reflect light better than rough scales) and strong resistance to felting. Mohair does not have a crimp like cashmere; however, the individual fibers can stretch out almost a third of its length due to its elasticity. This elasticity made mohair ideal for making western string girths or cinches for saddles. Mohair also wicks away moisture well and holds brightly colored dyes better than other natural fibers.

Although Angora goats come in many colors, most are white because the commercial industry prefers white for ease of dyeing, etc. Unlike cashmere goats which produce a small amount of relatively short fiber, Angora goats can produce up to 25% of their body weight in mohair in a year. The fiber grows very fast, about ¾ inch per month. Because mohair grows so quickly, Angora goats are usually sheared twice a year to maintain quality. Young goats can be sheared when 6 months old and produce the most high-value fiber due to its soft, silky texture. Mature goats produce about 8 to 16 pounds of mohair each year.

Mohair does not have to be “dehaired” like cashmere. However the fleece still needs to be “scoured” to remove dirt, vegetation, and any “goaty” scent. Just like wool, the mohair is often carded at a mill to make it into long, narrow bundles of fiber called “roving” that can then be spun into yarn.

Angora goats have been crossed with other breeds to produce Cashgora (cashmere x angoara), Pygora (pygmy x angora) and even Pycazz (pygora x cashmere) goats. Although these goats generally give more fiber than cashmere goats, the fiber is often coarser, longer and more variable than cashmere. It is not as desirable for the garment trade and you will usually get a lower price per ounce but you will also get more of it per goat. In addition, these special fibers are often very popular with hand spinners and knitters.

Goatskins can be made into top quality leather, drumheads and even parchment. Processing hides takes several steps. The fresh hide is “fleshed” (scraped to remove any meat and fat), and “salted” to “cure” the hide (the salt draws out the moisture in the hide so that bacteria cannot survive on it and spoil the hide). Then the hide is stretched. Lye or other chemicals are used to make the hair and hair roots “slip” (fall off). These cured hides called “rawhide” can then be changed into leather by “tanning” them. Tanning is a chemical process where tannic acid or other chemicals preserve the skin by permanently changing the protein in the skin into a stable substance very resistant to spoiling.

In the mid 1800’s, Gloversville, NY was known as the leather capital of the US. Nowadays, only a few full-line tanneries still operate there. Countries like the US that protect their citizens by regulating the use and disposal of the potentially polluting chemicals used in tanning find it hard to compete profitably with countries with more relaxed regulations. Goat leather in the US is manufactured into gloves (from fancy white kid gloves to work gloves), and high quality shoes, purses, pocket books and clothing. Most of the goatskins are imported from Africa. However, as the popularity of goat meat increases in the US, local tanneries may start to utilize local skins.

Over two thousand years ago people started making specially prepared rawhide from goats, sheep and calves into writing “paper” for the creation of books, etc. This special material is called “parchment”. The original pages of our Constitution, Declaration of Independence, and Bill of Rights were written on parchment. You can still see them in the rotunda of the National Archives Museum in Washington, D.C.

Drumheads for African and Indian style drums commonly come from goat hides. Some drumheads come from tanned hides while most are rawhide.

Around the world, you can find breeds of goats with longer guard hairs. Historically these guard hairs were made into paintbrushes and calligraphy brushes or, when long enough, even woven into purses, bags and rugs. Today, many paintbrushes are still made from goat hair.