U.S Sheep/Lamb/Wool Industry Flashcards
What factors influence eating satisfaction?
Production factors
* Breed
* Sex
* Diet
* Age/maturity
* Cutability
* Pre-harvest stress
* Chill rate
Farm to Fork Metality
* Gaining weight prior to slaughter
* USDA Yield grade 2/3
* Muscular (>REA)
* Reduce pre-slaughter stress
* Importance of cooking
* Identify consumer preference
* Provide Celebrations of Life
WHat is the lamb industry production flow?
- Farms/ranches
- Feedlots
- Packing houses/processors
Food distributors
Foodservice operations: Purchasers, chefs, cooks, servers
Customers
T/F: Lamb is a trendy food
True
What are the wool breeds?
- Rambouillet
- Columbia
- Dorset
What are the meat breeds?
- Dorset
- Suffolk
- Hampshire
What are the hair breeds?
- Dorper
- Katahdins
- White dorper
- Royal whites
What states have the top sheep populations in the U.S.
- Texas
- California
- Colorado (mostly lambs on feed)
- Wyoming
- Utah
- South Dakota
- Idaho
- Minnesota
- North Dakota
Why is the commercial sheep industry so important?
U.S commercial sheep producers are the backbone of a thriving lamb and wool industry
What are production decisions in the sheep/goat industry?
- Breed of sheep/ goat
- How many?
- Facilities
- Predator control
- Nutrition
- Animal health
- Marketing
What has happened to the sheep/lamb inventory vs lamb production
It has been trending downwards
What are the goals of the lamb industry?
High conception rates: 95%
High lambing percentage: 175%
Low lamb mortality: < 10%
Maintain/ improve wool (meat) quality and quantity
Lamb primal/subprimal cuts
- Shoulder
- Rack
- Loin
- Leg
- Foreshank
- Breast
- Flank
Top left to right (circle)
What month are there the most lambs on feed?
Lowest?
September, October, November
July & August
How do animals grow?
Bone stays consistent
Once past the logical endpoint (muscle) animals gain fat
Larger frame = larger weights
What factors affect dressing fat?
- Fut fill: Time off feed/water
- Hide/pelt: Mud, Wool
- Muscling
- External fat
- Internal fat (supposed to be removed in the processing plant)
Where do over 50% of lambs go?
Non-traditional markets
Where are most lamb processing plants located
Largely in Colorado
What is a major issue with lamb products?
Product uniformity
USDA Grading for lamb
- YG1: 5
- YG2: 27%
- YG3: 42%
- YG4: 19%
- YG5: 7%
There has been a decrease in federal lamb slaughter
Is quality grade important in the lamb industry?
Not really :)
Does country of origin matter?
Lamb has greater import competition than other competing red meat proteins
U.S. has an advantage in muscularity, but New Zealand and Australia have cheaper product (own > 60% of the market)
What country has the greatest per capita lamb consumption?
- New Zealand
- Australia
- Saudi arabia
What is the primary reason consumers buy or don’t buy lamb?
The flavor
What is the target audience for the lamb industry?
Foodies
What percent of U.S. consumers have never eaten lamb?
40%
Men consume more lamb
During the covid pandemic, what happened to lamb product prices?
They went up, some have stayed at that elevated price point
What happened to lamb after covid?
- Market surge in non-traditional/ethnic markets
- Adventrous lamb consumers
- At-home and retail strong
- Restaurant trading optimistic, but slow
- Seasonal summer/fall/spring money strength
- Supply and demand
- Adventurous
