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Social and commercial profile of the sheep and goat cattle systems in the Northwestern region of the Dominican Republic

Abstract:

In order to study the social and commercial aspects that characterize the sheep and goat cattle production systems in the Northwestern region of the Dominican Republic, 94 farms (24% of the population) were sampled, applying the direct survey method through random sampling with proportional weighting. The farms comprising this cattle system are 82% family owned, with a standing of 16 ±1.3 years. Of the owners, 93% are men, with average age of 51 ±1.2 years; 63% began primary schooling and 8% did not go to school. The land ownership regime is related to the type of exploitation according to the productive species (p<0.05); 84% of goat farms are on public land, and sheep and mixed farms make a larger use of private lots. For 53% of the owners the production of sheep and goats is their main activity and 75% of the farms use family labor. Marketing is carried out through long channels to butchers (70%), while 14% of the farms sell directly to consumers. The system under study is characterized by family farms whose owners are of advanced age, low training level, with a high dependency on public land y meager participation of the producer in marketing. This situation limits access to credit, as well as technological adoption and innovation. Finally, it is considered that the promotion of associations could help overcome such restrictions.