Southeast Kentucky is situated on the Cumberland Plateau of the central Appalachian Mountains and is nestled against the states of Virginia and Tennessee…

…and it is a region that holds great promise for the sheep industry!

It is a diverse landscape, characterized by beautiful forested mountains, rich bottomland soils, and lush hillside pastures. Yet, farmers and conservationists throughout southeastern Kentucky are challenged by the many acres of eroded, unproductive abandoned lands created by decades of natural resource exploitation.

Sheep are well adapted to hill land agriculture and are ideal for improving and maintaining upland landscapes. There is an old saying that “Shepherds build the land”. Due to their small size and small hooves, soil compaction and erosion are minimized, especially on sloping hill land. Because of their preference for many weeds and unwanted plants, they are ideal for vegetation control, especially for the suppression of invasive, non-native plants.

At one time, the Commonwealth of Kentucky was one of the largest sheep producing states in the nation. Given the high productivity potential for sheep in southeastern Kentucky, sheep farmers are uniting to create an agricultural renaissance for the sheep and wool industry and to contribute to the economic revitalization of our region and beyond.

The Southeast Kentucky Sheep Producers Association (SEKSPA) is a corporation formed exclusively for charitable and educational purposes within the meaning of Internal Revenue Code Section 501 (C) (3). The purpose of SEKSPA is to assist sheep and wool farmers and other interested persons in the breeding, raising, showing, marketing, and promotion of all breeds of sheep. The functions of SEKSPA are educational and social, that is, to gather together and join socially with people of southeastern Kentucky who are interested in learning more about the sheep and wool industry.