Highly nutritious goat meat: where to buy it?

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Extract from the article: Goat meat (gbonlan), which is very present in the diet of the Togolese, especially in urban areas, is a food with multiple nutritional benefits. The promotion of its consumption must go hand in hand with the promotion of hygiene and sanitary rules...

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Goat meat (gbonlan), which is very present in the diet of the Togolese, especially in urban areas, is a food with multiple nutritional benefits. The promotion of its consumption must go hand in hand with the promotion of hygiene and sanitary rules in its handling and cooking in order to get the maximum benefit from it. 

Goat meat as a source of protein and iron

According to a recent article published by an ITRA researcher, goat farming is practiced throughout the country, with approximately 3,401,512 head. This species is the second most important livestock species after poultry. Goat meat is highly appreciated and consumed by the majority of the Togolese population, particularly that of the castrated "Djallonké" goat in southern Togo, where it is on the menu of restaurants. Goats are immolated at funerals, weddings, sacrifices, end-of-year celebrations and baptisms.

Goat meat raised in Togo has similar characteristics to that of goats raised in Benin, where the average dry matter content varies from 24.38 to 35.39%; the organic matter content from 23.23 to 33.72%; the fat content from 2.25 to 3.19% and the protein content from 20.98 to 30.41%. This meat is also known to be rich in minerals, particularly iron. It is therefore essential to improve the diets of children and women with goat meat, especially women of childbearing age, pregnant and breastfeeding women, as they have a greater need for iron.

Meat to be cooked in good sanitary conditions

Goat meat, like all other meats, has a certain microbial load after slaughter, often composed of aerobic mesophilic flora, enterobacteria and salmonella, but this does not call into question its hygienic quality. This quality is often poorer when slaughter is carried out in uncontrolled circuits (clandestine slaughter), compared to slaughter in a slaughterhouse or approved abattoir. For this reason it is strongly recommended that goats are only slaughtered in such veterinary controlled places. The other alternative is to buy goat meat directly from butchers in the markets or to order from structures that promote healthy local products. The best known is BoBar, located in the Bè Beach district, which distributes local goat meat packaged under the brand name "viviviand".

Whatever the origin of the goat meat, it must be sufficiently cooked to ensure that it eliminates as many germs as possible that could affect the consumer. Also, frozen meat should only be thawed at the time of preparation to avoid the multiplication of microbial germs.

Source: Veterinarians Without Borders - Switzerland