Leaner Southdowns determined to prove they have changed

Press, 20 September 1985, Page 8

Leaner Southdowns determined to prove they have changed

The need to emphasise quality in New Zealand’s sheep meat industry is the motivation behind a revamping of the Southdown Sheep Society’s carcase evaluation competition. It is aimed at improving the quality of sheep meats by restoring the Southdown, which is claimed to have a much greater meat payability than other breeds, as a leading terminal sire in New Zealand. The competition is being supported by M.S.D. Agvet and has had a change of name from the Southdown Million Dollar Class, to the M.S.D. Agvet Southdown Carcass Evaluation. The vice-president of the Southdown Sheep Society, Mr David Wyllie, of the Gatton Park Southdown Stud near Ashburton, says the competition has been revamped to drive home to sheep breeders the value of the Southdown as a terminal sire. “The Southdown has become a dwindling breed since most of the blame was attached to it for the high fat content in New Zealand carcases,” Mr Wyllie says. “Before the 1960 s the export requirement was for a compact, low set, square meaty carcase and the Southdown and Romney were the main breeds contributing to the uniformity of the carcases.

“When the demand changed, the terminal sire breed at the top, the Southdown, got the blame and became the undeserved victim. “It was Conveniently ignored that any terminal sire has only 50 per cent influence. Authorities were prepared to lay 100 per cent blame on the Southdown while the dam escaped with no blame at all. “Southdown breeders acknowledge that the current world trend is towards much less fat than previously, and have adjusted breeding policies accordingly.”

Mr Wyllie says he can vouch for that fact because over the years, Southdown cross lambs have been more consistent award winners at local carcase competitions than any other breed. “The Romney ewe, with minor exceptions, continually provides the dam for such lambs and in fact, at these competitions, Romneys without fail monopolise the top placings in classes for wool-bred lambs,” he says. “These are competitions where carcases are analysed and measured in detail, not only for fat but also for meat yield, using modern Meat Board scoring mechanisms. “I am convinced, however, that management is still the best tool to control the amount of fat required.” Trials being conducted by a Lincoln-based research scientist at the Templeton Research Centre in association with the Southdown Breeders’ Society, using rams provided from the industry and others provided from a M.A.F. closed flock, have demonstrated that Southdown breeders have made significant advances in providing a low-fat, highmeat carcase. Mr Wyllie believes the Southdown’s features and attributes are a major key to the future of the New Zealand sheep meat industry. These are the production of a high yielding quality meat to fat/bone ratio sheep with more emphasis on meat palatability and greater attention on the most desired and expensive

cuts, such as the loin and hind quarter area, and particularly the rib eye. “I believe that we must act to generally improve the quality of our raw material, and the best way to do that is to include meat quality as a criterion for breeding. “If we don’t then we face the prospect of the meat industry trading with markets at the lower end of the scale instead of aiming for an up-market product,” he says. “Quality of our meat has been neglected over the last decade as the emphasis has been put purely on numbers. “Fashionable and desirable breeding policies that have been rigorously pursued recently, such as easy care, multiple births, open faces, mothering ability and four teated ewe, have all been at the expense of carcass quality, and to a lesser degree, better and heavier wool. “We can virtually put any grade or standard of animal into the works and as long as it is a sheep, get a reward for it, and, weight aside, as long as it is not over fat, bruised or condemned the difference is insignificant. “Producers don’t have any incentive to grow meat

with emphasis on the highly desirable cuts. The way the meat schedule is at the moment, to breed the correct type of sheep with wide bulging hindquarter, narrowing down to a fine, trimmer forequarter is a waste of time,” he says. He believes the Southdown Carcass Evaluation will help resolve these problems by stressing the breed’s ability to produce the features which some sections of the meat industry are now demanding for the export trade. “Most of the sheep competitions, with one or two exceptions, are based on purebred sheep and interest only the breeder of such animals. “Our idea with this competition is to base judging on the requirements of the consumer. We want to get the interested farmer into the show to see what we have done with the Southdown and to get some education involved for them, by detailing the reasons influencing the judges’ assessments of factors such as weight, lengths, height, G.R. and C fat measurements.” David Wyllie believes New Zealand is at the crossroads with its traditional meat industry, and that it is essential that changes are

made as soon as possible. He believes the Southdown has an important part to play in these changes. “In the 1960 s we had 1800 registered Southdown flocks and now we have 150, so there has been an enormous self-culling exercise. “Obviously the worst type — those bred with excess fat — have been rightly eliminated, and what is left now is a very desirable animal.” The first of the national new Southdown competitions will be held at the Royal Show in Hamilton in October.