By Government Press Office | BELIZE
BELMOPAN, Belize – The ministry of agriculture, food security and enterprise in collaboration with the Taiwan ICDF Breeding Sheep and Goat Production and Guidance System Enhancement Project (Sheep Project Phase II) held a Sheep Management Workshop at Grace Pook’s Farm in Rancho Dolores Village, Belize District on December 6, 2022.
Fifteen participants, including sheep and goat farmers and restaurant and resort owners, from the Belize District, attended the workshop that included presentations on the topics:
i) introduction of sheep project, ii) sheep health management, iii) sheep traceability system, iv) sheep nutrition, v) pasture establishment, vi) supplemental feeding, and vii) lamb cuts preparation demonstration.
The workshop is another commitment of the Sheep Project Phase II to help farmers learn from other farmers. Pook and Istvan Metzger, the Sheep Project field manager, acted on this commitment through their demonstration of the daily management activities of sheep farming, including sheep breeds, feeding, and vitamin application.
The Sheep and Goat Project includes a budget of US$3 million for a four-year implementation of phase II, which was signed by the governments of Belize and the Republic of China (Taiwan) in March 2020.
The objectives of the project include assisting Belizean farmers in improving the quality of sheep and goats, promoting the domestic consumption of sheep and goat products and exporting these products regionally, as well as strengthening the sheep and goat traceability system to improve value chain efficiencies in Belize.