UK’s native sheep breeds in spotlight following US taste test
The UK’s many native sheep breeds have been put in the spotlight after US meat processors arrived in the country and took part in a mutton taste test.
The British Heritage Sheep scheme and the AHDB championed the unique flavour brought to the table by native sheep breeds at the NSA Sheep 2022 event.
There, a taste test was conducted by a group of US meat processors, who were in the UK.
It encompassed three breeds, the Herdwick, Portland and Shropshire, which were selected due to their different ancestry.
Britain has the largest number of native sheep breeds of any country in the world – over 60.
The British Heritage Sheep scheme aims to commercialise the UK’s historic breeds by making an asset out of diversity, and offering a choice to consumers.
The scheme is based on an ABC of three key pieces of information for the consumer – age, breed and countryside.
Following the taste test, NSA chief executive, Phil Stocker explained that sheep meat was one of the last undifferentiated foods in mainstream markets.
“Not all sheep meat tastes the same, particularly as sheep get older producing hogget and mutton, the main factors affecting the flavour are the age of the animal and its breed.
“To some extent what the animal eats will also affect its flavour – for example, a mountain sheep eats predominantly wild herbs and grasses, giving the meat a distinctive eating experience, highly prized in past generations.”
By Farming UK
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