Rico L. Diaz set up the RLD Goat Farm in Cabuyao, Laguna. Today, he has a thriving goat operation and a vermiculture project. He is also starting to develop a goat dairy project.

 MANILA, Philippines – People who are intending to put up their own farm projects should consider joining farm tours or visits to different farms. That could be helpful in avoiding costly mistakes in undertaking their farm projects.

Rico L. Diaz, owner of the goat farm that will be visited by attendees of the AANI Farm Tour on Saturday, February 19, will tell you that visiting different farms could enable one to pick up winning farming strategies.

Rico grew up in the city and did not have any experience in farming when he decided to get into goat raising. He was just 21 then and a third year college student at the Ateneo. After studying possible investments of his savings which was just sitting in the bank with very low interest rate, he started his project in October 2006. He had also considered investing in the food business but then he observed that the field was already overcrowded. On the other hand, the goat raising business was considerably new and offered a lot of possibilities.

Although he did not have any experience in farming, he had an ace under his sleeves. The family on his mother’s side owned a 40-hectare property in Cabuyao, Laguna, which was idle for as long as he could remember and which he could use for his project. Thus, he did not have to buy expensive real estate to raise his favorite goats.

For a start, he bought 20 native goats and a fullblood Boer buck. Boer is a heavy breed that could improve the size of the native goats.

Rico confessed that goat raising was not as simple as he had imagined. The first year was particularly frustrating for him because many of the kids, and even the adult animals, succumbed to a number of causes. But he remained positive in his outlook. In no time he and his assistant on the farm, Loloy Oracion, learned to correct their mistakes.

Rico searched for information in the internet while he and Loloy visited many goat farms, and talked to people with a lot of experience.

He mentions Dr. Jessie Papa of BMW Goat Farm as particularly helpful. He was the one who taught them to regularly deworm their animals. Parasites could sap the vigor of the animals which could lead to mortality or stunted growth.

One of the things that Rico and his assistant learned to prevent parasite infestation and other diseases is to release the animals to the pasture starting at 10 to 11 a.m. That way the grasses will no longer be wet and the parasites would already be down below.

They also improved their housing to provide better ventilation for the animals. The floor was elevated. And speaking of housing for goats, Rico uses cheap but sturdy construction materials. He uses a lot of palo china bought from the junk shop, for instance. The roofing is also made of a kind of plastic that’s also sourced from the junk shop. He will tell you that one goat house cost him only about P35,000. But the house is functional and sturdy. In fact, their goat houses have withstood the onslaught of typhoons the likes of Basiang and Pepeng.

Today, the goat farm is doing very well. It now has over a hundred female breeders and several Boer and Anglo Nubian bucks. During the birthing season, Rico said, they could have about 300 in their herd. Marketing the breeders and fatteners is no problem for Rico. Many of the young animals are bought by local governments in Laguna for dispersal. Of course there are also private individuals buying their stock from him.

Rico is also upbeat in going into goat dairy farming soon. He already has five purebred Saanen goats, one of which is in the milk line while the four others are already pregnant. He will add more Saanens soon.

About two years ago, Rico experimented on raising the African nightcrawler to produce vermicompost. At first the purpose was to solve the problem of disposing goat manure. He soon discovered that vermicompost is a potent fertilizer for their forage grasses. He then decided to make vermiculture an honest-to-goodness business venture.

Today, they are producing 8 to 10 tons of vermicompost every month. The goat manure is an ideal substrate for vermiculture together with the left over grasses of the animals. The combination of goat raising and vermiculture is a winning strategy. Why? Well, the big sales come from the sale of the goats for breeding and fattening. But that comes just a few times a year. On the other hand, the vermicompost provides cash flow regularly throughout the year. The vermicompost is bought by hobbyists as well as commercial organic farmers and gardeners.

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TALK ON AGRICULTURE WRITING – Tomorrow, from 2:30 to 4 p.m., we will talk on Agriculture Writing at the T.F. Valencia Media Center at the Rizal Park in Manila. The lecture is part of a series of weekly lectures sponsored by the Teodoro F. Valencia Foundation. Journalism and mass communication students and some professionals will be attending.

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FREE LIVESTOCK FORUM ON FEBRUARY 20 – Open free to the public is the livestock forum at the AANI Weekend Market at the St. Vincent Seminary on Tandang Sora, Quezon City. Ben Rara and Dr. Rey Itchon will lecture on goats, chickens and swine. The place can be reached by taking Visayas Avenue from the Quezon Memorial Circle, turning left upon reaching Tandang Sora. The place is only about 30 meters away to the right. In the morning of the same day, there will be a meeting of the mango group headed by Tony S. Rola. Then on February 26, Tony Rola will conduct a detailed whole-day seminar on mango production at the same venue.