| Imagine Maui or your favorite white sand beach, add a sky full of cockatoos and parrots, some wallabies, a few kangaroos, and a koala bear, and you've beamed yourself "down under" to the beautiful beaches of the Gold Coast. "Feel the Warmth," said the brochure, and warm it was, with typical Aussie (say Auzzie) hospitality and charm. The 1996 International Alpaca Industry Seminar was held July 5, 6, and 7 at Seaworld in Queensland, Australia, by the Australian Alpaca Association, Inc. (AAA).
The AAA does things a little different than AOBA. They sponsor two events a year. The first event, held in July, is their educational seminar, which is run without Alpacas, shows, or sales -- education only. The second event, held in November, is centered around their national show and elite auction. AOBA does much the same thing, all at the same time, in June at their national convention.
The seminar lasted for three full days and was one of the most delightful Alpaca events I have ever attended. The classes were lively and led by highly entertaining and educational speakers. My personal favorites included "Sustaining the Lifestyle," "The Alpaca Industry Future," "An Australian Research Project," and "AAA Pedigree - Who, Why, What, and When."
Alpaca aficionados from around the world populated the conference. Jerry Hearsum, Carol Davies, and I attended from the U.S. Oh, the stories I could tell about Carol and her Aussie odyssey, but we'll save those for another (long) article. Suffice it to say, Carol won't soon be forgotten Down Under. There were participants from Peru, Chile, Canada, France, New Zealand, and Bolivia.
Our own Brad Smith and Karen Timms taught several seminars and Walter Bravo's was well received with his talk on the latest reproduction research. I was graciously allowed to give my Vicuna roundup, "Chacu", slide presentation and spoke to the attendees about the current American Alpaca market. The Australian speakers were all extremely qualified and had many new and interesting ideas to communicate.
Ian Knox is an absolutely irreverent, funny speaker. He has published a book about alternative farming, Beyond Broad Acres. He is a professor at the Gorden Technical College in Geelong, Victoria, and is trained as both a wool and sheep classer. His lecture began with the following assessment of Australian agriculture, which may have a familiar ring to the American ear.
"The role of traditional farming in Australian society has changed dramatically in the last decade, with part time farmers now outnumbering full time by a factor of two to one. Average Australian farm business profit has only exceeded $15,000 a few times in the past 25 years. While many officers of State Departments of Agriculture still grapple with legitimizing emerging industries such as Alpaca as 'real farming,' the viability of mainstream farming must surely be scrutinized.
For those of us working 'off farm,' the promise of more leisure time has proven to be a myth. Workplaces have changed dramatically. The average worker will now change careers three or more times in a lifetime. Employee company loyalty has been lost amongst the slashing and burning. Whereas once business people purchased farms as part of an investment portfolio, they are now buying them to escape -- even if only on weekends."
After discussing a number of current concerns about how the environment is dealing with current farming practices (poorly) and recounting how mad cow disease is responsible for a resurgence in the sale of vegetarian cookbooks in England, Ian made the following points.
- Society has a moral obligation to future generations to farm on a sustainable basis without depleting the environment.
- A sustainable lifestyle is a key motivation for people choosing to farm low impact crops and animals, such as Alpacas.
- Big farms may have reached their limits and the future will see smaller farms and agricultural enterprises.
- The true base of agriculture is not so much science and mass production as livable communities and healthy rural families residing in a safe environment.
- Today's consumer wants products, such as Alpacas, which are produced with respect for the ecosystem.
Knox points out that, while there are many reasons to be gloomy about present farming practices, there are the seeds of hope in such endeavors as Alpaca farming. Alpacas produce a quality product with little, if any, damage to the environment. He finished his lecture with a quote form "The Great Mind Shift" by Robert Bawden:
"Thinking about agriculture as a vehicle for a better quality of rural life, rather than as an end unto itself, is as different as thinking about waste as a valuable resource, rather than something to be thrown away. It's all about changing minds...."
Nick Veltjens begins his lecture paper with a printed disclaimer, saying he is not a financial planner and his projections and graphs are based on his own personal opinions. He then proceeded to use the following assumptions as the basis for projecting a dynamic shift in the distribution of the world Alpaca population.
- The South American Alpaca population growth is static or declining.
- The fertility rate of South American Alpacas is poor.
- Alpacas in South American are also used as a meat source, which inhibits population growth.
- Herds being established in other parts of the world will grow far more rapidly than in South America.
- Imports will proceed at a rate beginning at 3.8% of the Australian herd and decrease to 1% over time.
Based on the above assumption, Veltjens projects that Australia's share of the world population of Alpacas will be 44%, South America's 31%, Europe 11%, Asia 3%, and the North American share will be 18%. I love the Aussie optimism.
Chris Tuckwell is a researcher from the University of Adelaide in South Australia. The ongoing research project he presented is being jointly undertaken by several institutions and researchers. The premise for the study is that Alpacas are a viable form of agriculture that's in Australia to stay. The project is billed as the "First scientific evaluation of Alpacas in Australia." There are a number of fascinating preliminary results beginning to emerge from the study.
"Data collected from collaborating herds will enable the estimation of: (i) initial phenotypic and genetic parameters, (ii) base blood trace element and vitamin levels, (iii) incidence of internal parasitism, and (iv) fully describe the range in quality and quantity of fibre to enable appropriate fibre marketing.
The first component of the study will involve the collection of pedigree, reproductive, and production records of Alpaca on the properties. Fleece characters studied will be the major determinants of fleece value, including fibre diameter, yield, strength, medullation, and fleece colour. Duplicate fleece samples will be collected and stored for future research. The second component of the study will be regular blood sampling of animals for trace element assays to establish normal ranges for healthy animals in Southern Australia. The final component of the project will be a study of internal parasite populations, and their control, in Alpaca in Southern Australia.
Alpacas sampled were from four age groups, viz.: cria (<6 months of age); weaners (6 to 12 months of age); tuis (12 to 24 months of age), and; adults (>24 months of age)."
The study contains a disclaimer suggesting that the results are preliminary and the indicated trends are subject to change. Having said that, the following data provides some fascinating insights.
- Fleece Data: The following information was the result of an analysis of two annual shearings on five properties in Southern Australia.
- The micron count for Huacaya weaners averaged about 22, tuis about 25, and adults about 30 microns.
- The micron count for Suri weaners averaged from 23 to 25, tuis about 25, and adults about 29.
There was no significant differences between sexes within age groups for mean fiber diameter or co-efficient of variation. The data seems to confirm that micron counts increase with age.
The researchers also looked at the issue of whether there is a significant difference in micron counts between different colored fleeces. They found, based on the limited color samples available, no significant difference.
The project found that Alpaca fleece has a clean yield of between 91% and 94%. They also determined that Huacaya males produced significantly more fleece than females. No such data was available for Suris. Internal Parasite Data: This section of Chris' lecture was most interesting. As I understand the researchers' findings, they are questioning whether Alpacas should be "routinely" wormed if they show no signs of parasite infestation. They are concerned that parasites, which naturally occur in Alpacas at low levels, will become resistant to such products as Ivomectin.
If the researchers hypotheses that Alpacas are fairly resistant to parasites is medicine. The thought is that routinely checking fecals and only treating Alpacas with actual problems may be the more prudent path.
Richard Apps gave an interesting presentation of the Australian registry and how it works. One of the major differences with our registry is the absence of a blood typing requirement. Apps discussed pedigrees or "family trees" and their value to the breeder. He offered the following list of reasons to register Alpacas.
- provision of a Pedigree Registration Certificate from the AAA database;
- documentation of actual and ancestral fleece colour and type;
- fostering of buyer confidence in your Alpaca as the Register clearly indicates age, breeder, and breeding of your sale stock;
- adding value to the alpaca you are breeding;
- a marketing advantage over unregistered stock;
- potential to interface with PC software for within herd, on farm management; such as Herd Magic (used in Australia);
- the taking of an essential first step to future genetic evaluation which is based on a combination of pedigree and performance data.
The male certification program was explained. This program allows to have their males inspected by a vet, using a procedure similar to the genetic screening form used by the Alpaca Registry, Inc. Certification is required if 1) a male is transferred, and 2) a male is used as a service sire for outside breeders.
The current population of Alpacas in Australia is 11,157 animals who are owned by 1,233 breeders. The herd is growing at about a rate of 2,000 per year.
There were many other interesting subjects presented at the "Feel the Warmth" seminar. They included lectures by Cameron Holt on Fleece Preparation and Measurement, Dr. George Jackson on Heat Stress, Dr. Bob Pigatt on Practical Alpaca Nutrition, Robert Mulkens on Australian tax issues, and Dr. Denis Ryan on Neonatology.
The Saturday evening banquet, which was fantastic, included a fund raising auction, led by Chris Williams as auctioneer, and featured enthusiastic bidding by several Americans. Carol Davis contributed a sterling silver and gold belt buckle (made in Texas, of course), which was a reproduction of the AAA logo. The buckle sold for over $2,000, partly as a result of the Americans trying to capture the AAA logo and take it back to the U.S.
No luck -- the Aussies weren't going to let the Yanks wear the AAA buckle.
Alan Cousill, Sheryl Riley, Julie Byrd, Helen Fritsch, Pauline Nugent, and Jenny Jones were the committee responsible for this stellar event. I would like to thank each of them for a wonderful time and a great Alpaca education. I truly "felt the warmth."
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