Lamb Age has Little Impact on Eating Quality

Area of Science:

• Animal Science
• Food Science
• Consumer Science

Background:

• Industry perception suggests new season lamb offers superior eating quality compared to old season lamb.
• Objective evaluation is needed to validate consumer perceptions of lamb age and eating quality.

Purpose of the Study:

• To determine if significant differences exist in consumer eating quality scores between new season (NS) and old season (OS) lamb.
• To identify specific lamb cuts where age may influence sensory attributes.

Main Methods:

• Consumer eating quality scores were collected for eight different lamb cuts from 120 NS lambs (average age 240 days) and 121 OS lambs (average age 328 days).
• Lamb cuts were prepared by grilling or roasting and assessed by untrained consumers for tenderness, juiciness, flavor liking, and overall liking.
• Data were analyzed to compare sensory traits between the two age groups across various cuts and flocks.

Main Results:

• No significant differences in eating quality were found for loin, leg, shoulder, and rack cuts between NS and OS lamb.
• Topside juiciness was higher in NS lambs, while outside cut quality showed variation by flock, with NS lambs scoring higher in Flock 3.
• OS lambs scored lower for tenderness, juiciness, and flavor liking in knuckle (2.8 points lower) and rump (3.1 points lower) cuts compared to NS lambs.

Conclusions:

• Overall, there is little difference in the eating quality of new season and old season lamb based on consumer sensory evaluation.
• These findings support the development of high-quality old season or "autumn lamb" products.
• Old season lamb could potentially achieve premium retail pricing comparable to new season lamb.