LAMB QUALITY

Waikato Times, Volume 122, Issue 20422, 12 February 1938, Page 22 (Supplement)

LAMB QUALITY

COMPACT SORTS NEEDED WHAT BRITISH CUSTOMERS Want Perhaps the most interesting lecture ever given on the New Zealand fat lamb industry was that delivered by the English authority, Dr. John Hammond, at the Feilding Show, where he was able to demonstrate with some of the exhibits at the show. First of all, Dr. Hammond emphasised that shortness in the leg was most important. With two carcases ►he showed that one, with a shorter hind leg than the other, was much the better carcase for the Home market. The hind legs of the carcases must be short, he said, and further they must be nicely covered and the loin should be well filled out, broad across the animal’s back.

Explaining various points about the carcase that the London trade required, the speaker said the first was lightness. Families were smaller now and they wanted smaller joints. The little light lamb was what the public wanted. It might not seem to pay quite as well as getting more weight, but it would pay in the long run from a national point of view. Other countries were aiming at the 28-30 lb. lamb, the one that was making the best price on the Home market. Some of the New Zealand lambs were “a little too good"—they carried just a little too much fat and were inclined, for that reason, to be a little too heavy. The lamb right off the mother was what was wanted. The best lamb was the one that had been “pushed” at the beginning.. Desirable Conformation. Taking the two carcases, Dr. Hammond showed one had a “U” shape formed by the hind legs and the other a “V” shape. The “U” shape was the first point the buyer would look for, he said. The buyer wanted short bones and thick flesh over them. A short cannon bone (which was situated just below the end joint of the hind leg carcase) was seen together with the short leg, and the living animal could thus be judged for shortness of leg. The short cannon bofle formed the basis of the short leg.

The next point was the filling out of the loin, the speaker continued. Placing his hand across the back of one carcase he showed that his fingers and thumb spanned the back to reach a short distance down the sides, but on the other the fingers and thumb did not reach over the side and thus held the palm away from the backbone. That was what was required, he said. The loin should “fill the hand.” It was the part of the animal which grew last, so the quicker the animal was pushed on in its growth the better the loin would be. The leg and loin provided the highest priced joints, and it was natural that the butcher wanted those to be of the best quality.

The next point was the amount of covering on the hind leg. Dr. Hammond proceeded. The leg should be well covered with meat, otherwise the meat would draw out in cold storage and in cooking, to become hard. The thickening of the leg would be greatly helped by the shortening of the body, because it followed that the same amount of meat on the shorter bones gave greater thickness than on the longer ones. These three points were the principal ones in the requirements of the trade in regard to carcase conformation, Dr. Hammond proceeded. Doubtless, his listeners had heard of points in regard to neck and shoulders, but a short neck followed on short legs and less length, and pointed shoulders went with long legs. If the three points mentioned were striven for the other desirable features would follow. Cuts of Meat.

Not only was it desirable that the meat should sell on its appearance, but also that the customer should be satisfied with it when he had it on his plate, the speaker commented. To that end he carried the demonstration further, an assistant cutting the carcase through to leave the last rib on the hind section. Dr. Hammond explained that the cut was made at that point because it was the last point of development in the sheep’s body, and if the carcase was good there it would be good everywhere else. The first feature to look for was the depth of lean meat on the back, that making for good chops on the plate. The meat should stand out above the level of the bone so that when the chop was cooked it appeared to be j all meat—if the depth of meat was

not there it shrank on to the bone and the chop seemed to be all bone. The next point to consider was the amount of fat that lay on the back. If the fat was not there the chop would dry up in cooking, there not being enough fat to keep the moisture in the lean meat. However,-the provision of fat on the back could be overdone and be too thick. The bigger and heavier lambs carried the additional weight largely on the back, and in the wether carcase that was worse still. Hardly anybody except the big hotels wanted wethers nowadays, and even then they ! had to pare a lot of fat off the back, ; which went to waste. Further, one . did not want a large amount of weight on the bottom of the ribs. ; That was only a low-priced joint, and , the butcher did not like paying dearly i for a joint that he could sell only j cheaply.

Importance of Colour. The colour of the lamb was very important, the speaker added. The meat of young, milk-fed animals had a lighter and more fresh colour than that of the older animals. It also had a lighter flavour. The public wanted a lightly flavoured meat. Strong meat—just as with bulls and rams—had a darker colour. The brighter and lighter colour in the meat was to be seen in the animal that was fed quickly. The colour , could be effected by the treatment | given the animals just before they ! were slaughtered.

If the animals were walked a long i way and killed right away the meat | had a darlj colour. The lambs should be brought to the killing works—as the speaker believed most of them j were in New Zealand—in lorries, so ; that they did not run about very j much and use the muscles which j yielded the meat in the carcase. The > lambs should also be kept away from the sun, for if the sun played on their backs they would not bleed properly on being slaughtered and would not thus give the desirable pale colour. The value of colour could not be reckoned in pounds, shillings and pence, but it was an important factor in the value of meat in bulk. As an instance, the speaker said that lamb was being received from Iceland, where the animals were walked five or ten miles before being slaughtered, and their flesh was so dark that If there was any other on the market the buyers would not touch the Iceland lambs.

To summarise, said the speaker, what was wanted in New Zealand—and he thought the breeders were working in the right direction—was a shorter-legged animal (with short cannon bones) that would finish with a low weight. He had seen Romneys “coming down” in height, getting a better leg. The v Southdown could not be expected to give everything. The other breed could do its share to bring the height of the lamb down and could help to produce what the London market required.