Cabrito Goat Meat

PRODUCER: Cabrito Goat Meat, Devon
PRODUCT: Kid goat meat
REGION: South West, Channel Islands and Isles of Scilly
CATEGORY: From the Field (Primary)

WHAT THEY DO

When James Whetlor and Sushila Moles purchased four billy (male) goats to help clear an overgrown patch of land, neither realised that this was the beginning of an award-winning business. 

After a chance meeting at Taunton farmers’ market, James bought more billies from Will Atkinson of Hill Farm Dairy to try out at The River Cottage Canteen in Axminster, where he was a chef, and was amazed at their popularity. Dairy produce made from goat’s milk is on the rise in the UK but the billies (who can’t produce milk, obviously) are usually culled at birth. Holding the belief that these creatures were worth rearing, Cabrito was born and James was soon purchasing Will’s surplus goats (and, later, animals from other farms) to raise for meat. James says, “Will and I decided to try and make use of a resource on our doorstep that was just going to waste”. 

Cabrito’s kid goats are similar in size to a spring lamb, with a delicate musky flavour that makes a good pairing for bold spices. With twice as much iron as beef and rich in potassium, goat meat is lower in fat than both beef and pork.

Putting James’s contacts from 15 years in the London restaurant industry to use, Cabrito now supplies around 70 restaurants as well as being available through Ocado, and counts Antonio Carluccio and Hugh Fearnley-Whittingstall as fans. 

“Goat meat is moving into the mainstream… this is great news for everyone. Chefs get new flavours to play with and a new challenge in the kitchen. The consumer gets more choice and more exciting menu options, and the humble billy goat gets six months of good life before it becomes someone’s dinner, rather than being considered worthless,” says James.

WHAT THE JUDGES SAID

This product excited the judges, who praised it as a productive and tasty use of what was previously a wasted by-product of the goat dairy industry.

VISIT THE WEBSITE:  cabrito.co.uk