News Release Archive

ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT/TOURISM--PROGRAM CULTIVATES SUMMER JOBS
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With baby bottles in hand, Laura Broome goes out to the shed to
feed her kids. The 18-year-old native of New Ross decided to get
a head start on a career in agriculture by raising goats this
summer. 

The idea started with her mother, who once raised goats herself.
Upon research, Ms. Broome found the market for goats in the area
to be quite lucrative, with not enough supply to meet the demand.
"It was something for me to do for the summer to earn some extra
money," said Ms. Broome.

Since early May, she has been busy taking care of the 20 goats
she has invested in. "Most of them are a couple of days old when
I get them and I'm raising them on milk replacer."

Ms. Broome was able to go into the goat-raising business by
tapping into the Youth Entrepreneurial Skills (YES) program, an
initiative of Nova Scotia Economic Development and Tourism. With
the help of a $2,000 YES loan, she was able to buy the essentials
for her operation --fencing, feed, and the goats.

Ms. Broome bought her goats from a local supplier. "The suppliers
are happy to see people take an interest in it because there are
not a lot of goat farms around."

In the fall, she will be selling the goats to an area wholesaler.
The lowest sale price is $1.25 per pound, live weight, and with
most of the goats weighing about 60 pounds at the time of sale,
Ms. Broome is confident she will make a respectable profit.  

"I'm leaving the goats the very latest I can so that they grow.
If they reach their weight at Christmas time, they will be sold
then. Christmas and Easter are the best times, as goat meat is a
specialty."

Ms. Broome is attending the Nova Scotia Agricultural College in
Truro this fall as a student in the animal science technology
program. The experience she gained over the summer, she said,
will help her in her studies, and in deciding whether to start
her own business upon graduation.

"If in the future I want to run a business of my own, I will have
ideas of how to run it or how to manage it," she said. "I know
you have to research to find out if it's going to work before you
put your time and money into it."

She has also learned there are certain benefits to running your
own business --at least the goat-rearing business. "They (the
goats) are down to an hour-a-day feeding, so it's an hour a day
and you're done. That's not bad for a summer job."

Ms. Broome said the Youth Entrepreneurial Skills program provides
a great opportunity for students to do something they really want
to do, rather than struggle to find summer employment. "There are
not a lot of jobs out there; this is something you can do and it
works."

The YES program provides loans to full-time students between the
ages of 16 and 29 who wish to set up and operate their own
business. It helps participants prepare a business plan and
provides business counselling and training. Eligible students can
obtain a loan of up to $5,000.

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Contact: Angela Campbell
         Economic Development and Tourism
         902-424-1728
         E-mail: econ.campbeam@gov.ns.ca

NOTE TO EDITORS: Colour photos available upon request.

ngr                  September 8, 1997                 3:50 pm