There are a number of ways you can become involved with the alpaca industry. Some are listed here but the only restriction is your imagination.

Direct Ownership
Quit your job, sell your house and move to the country. Well you don't have to go to this extreme but many people make this lifestyle change when they retire. Fully committed alpaca farming can be the most rewarding of alpaca ventures. If you already have land or currently have other livestock, the transition or inclusion of alpacas may be minimal. This is for people who want daily hands on interaction with all aspects of animal care and breeding as well as the numerous business aspects.

Agistment
Agistment is an arrangement with an established alpaca farm where you purchase one or more animals and they reside at someone else’s farm. You pay a boarding fee to the agisting farm for the care and feeding of your animals. You, as the owner, make all decisions regarding your animals and are responsible for any marketing, breeding, or sales. This is attractive for people who don't have the space or time to be full time alpaca farmers but want to be fully involved with the business aspects of their herd.

Partial ownership
Partial ownership in an animal can be purchased with a wide range of participation options from hands on, to totally hands off. This gives you, the investor, the benefits from growth of the alpaca industry without the day to day herd or business management responsibilities.

Rent-a-Womb
This is a new concept, which is in the process of being developed. It involves hiring a female, or her womb, to breed a specific genetic mix to your specification. You own the cria from conception. This provides a way for you to enter the industry with quality genetics, at reduced costs and shared risks.

Investment Packages
Click here to read about investment packages available from Sonric Suri Alpacas

{NB: Investing in livestock/bloodstock has a degree of speculation and investors do so at their own risk}

The initial cost of an alpaca can range from a few hundred to several tens of thousands of dollars. Your reason for owning alpacas will determine the investment amount of your animal/s. There are a variety of packages, structures and options available to you.

The following are indicative of Suri Alpaca available through Sonric Suri Alpacas.

Pets/Wethers range $500 to $1,500.

Quality breeding females start at $10,000

Breeding
The breeding goals for each alpaca farm are different, but in general everyone is looking to improve their quality. If you can successfully pass on the quality genetic traits to offspring, your breeding females can reproduce (and improve) themselves every year, potentially “paying for themselves” over and over again as you sell their offspring.

Male offspring have two markets

• Stud quality males
• Pets/companion animals

Proven quality stud males command a high price but it does take several years to prove the worthiness of such a claim. Prices are variable and there are extreme cases which indicate the lack of “ceiling” in this area – in late 2006, in the USA, there was a record sale of US$600,000 for Stud Male Accoyo Peruvian Royal Fawn. It is more common in NZ for these males to be priced from NZ$30,000.

A more likely outcome for a male is to become a wether (a gelded male) and sold as a pet or companion animal. Being so cute and suited to lifestyle blocks, they are marketed as pets and fetch $500 - $1,500 each, according to quality – although package deals are common, e.g. 3 for $1,500. They still produce fleece and can be used for such purposes. These wethers are often sold/supplied as companion animals to go with breeding stock to help keep your start up costs low.

Fleece

Alpacas are generally shorn annually. How much an alpaca yields in fleece varies greatly between animals. Breeders’ goals are to get consistency, quality and greater yields. Our animals are currently yielding on average between 2 – 4 kg each of useable fibre. Raw fibre, of good quality, is currently fetching approximately $45 - $100 per kg. By processing the raw fleece you can add significant value to the product and increase its return even more.

Other Business Services: 

• Herdsire - Mating services range $750 - $1,500 based on quality and breeding history/”experience”
• Shearing - Offering to shear other alpacas – current market price approx $25 per animal
• Herd maintenance - Providing assistance to new owners and those who need a hand
• Boarding/Agistment - Economies of scale – it isn’t a great deal more cost nor effort to look after a few others.
• Manure - Great for the garden
• Other “bright ideas” - B&B, Craft products & shops, farm tours/stays, etc

The return rates vary depending on quality of animals, sex of offspring, price of fleece and whether you grow your herd or keep it static. Getting realistic numbers from experienced breeders will be difficult because they will be required to disclose financial records. Here's some simple (example) numbers to work with.

Additionally, there are other revenue opportunities available – e.g. Mating Services, Shearing, etc – see previous section.