Why not lamb and mutton?

[Marthe48]

With the price of beef and pork staying high and probably going higher, why aren't more grocery chains offering mutton and lamb? I know people who raise sheep and would it probably increase their income if they had a bigger market for their stock. We live in a rural area. I see lamb offered seasonally, have never seen mutton.

[La Lioness Priyanka]

1. lamb is pretty expensive here too. wish goat was more easily found

[BronxBoy]

6. Goat is actually a very

Hot item in the Atlanta market. Most of the producers I know can't keep up with demand. We just need more processing facilities

[orleans]

2. what's the difference between lamb & mutton? n/t

[antiquie]

3. Age

Lamb is a sheep less than a year old, typically slaughtered between the ages of 4 and 12 months. Older sheep is called mutton and has a much stronger flavor and tougher meat that many find distasteful. Mutton was a cheap food source for the military, and it was often overcooked and dry. Many American servicemen had their fill of mutton, coming home to declare it off-limits in the family home. This may be another reason why lamb has not become more popular in the States.

[orleans]

5. thanks for the reply. n/t

[pinboy3niner]

19. AHA! I KNEW there was something wrong with that roast beef the Army fed me!

[Kali]

7. stench

mutton is adult animals and if you are sensitive to that gagging off-taste it has a LOT more of it

I can eat seasoned grilled lamb or a mixture of lamb and beef, but I couldn't choke down a hunk of mutton if there was a gun to my head.

[orleans]

10. lol. thanks for the graphics, kali.

maybe i'll go throw up now.

(i'm just kidding--i knew i was walking that tight-rope when i asked the question)

[JimDandy]

11. I enjoy lamb.

But I also like beef tongue and goat. Never had mutton. Don't want it now!

[Recursion]

20. In the US, pretty much nothing. US "lamb" would be called "mutton" elsewhere.

In theory the difference is age (lamb is younger), but the US has much less stringent naming requirements on lamb/mutton, so outside of ethnic grocery stores it's all just called "lamb".

(As a side note, in India "mutton" generally means goat...)

[BronxBoy]

4. Several reasons

With the exception of the more well known cuts of lamb, meats like mutton and goat are just not that familiar to the average American consumer. I think we will see this change as certain ethnic populations such as Latinos and Africanscontinue to grow.

Another reason is that in many states there are no legal processing facilities to butcher small ruminants like goats and sheep in a manner that will allow the sale of meat into larger retail establishments. In many cases, a consumer has to find a farmer and get it privately processed.

Things are changing but it will take awhile

[hedgehog]

8. I love lamb, but I rarely buy it because it is so expensive.

I think I would like mutton as well, because I've enjoyed venison.

[Kali]

9. pork is pretty cheap still

beef is getting outrageous (although as a person who raises it, I thank any buyers for allowing a little better income lately!)

direct marketing for sheep and goats is how most that I know raising them do it. Farmers markets or other local methods.

I don't know how rigid lambing times are compared to cattle (cattle can calve year round in a lot of milder climates), but lamb may be seasonal because it IS a seasonal biological event. I think retail lamb may be imported from New Zealand? somebody can correct me if they know more. def. not my area of expertise LOL

[BronxBoy]

13. Yes. Most comes from NZ

I think there is also some coming out of South America. We won't see more commercial lamb from the U.S. until sufficient processing infrastructure is built among other things.

[eShirl]

12. or rabbit?

We rarely (never?) see rabbit in US supermarkets, although it’s available everywhere in Canada and Europe.
http://www.motherearthnews.com/real-food/omg-were-eating-thumper.aspx#axzz3Imcc7T4V

Rabbit: A Great Meat Animal for Small Homesteads
Clean, quiet rabbits are easy to raise, even for urban growers.
http://www.motherearthnews.com/homesteading-and-livestock/meat-rabbits-zm0z11zmat.aspx#axzz3Imcc7T4V

[GeorgeGist]

14. .

[Marthe48]

15. Lots of good information in the replies

My Dad owned a grocery store and we always ate a lot of meat. Over the years, my husband and I have cut down on eating meat, now mostly chicken, sometimes pork or a hamburger. I think I'll go to the local farmers' market and see if I can get lamb for stew. Thanks for all the good information!

[KamaAina]

16. Why not kid?

Why do we only eat adult goats?

[sir pball]

17. Short answer, price

I love lamb and mutton both but the former is always seriously expensive even wholesale, and the latter is hard to find. As for goat and rabbit, they're both not only rare but tend to be a little expensive too, economy of scale and all that.

I'd say, for a normal consumer, whole chickens are your best bargain. Takes a half hour to learn to break them down and you get not only the breasts and legs but the carcasses to make stock with. There's a reason birds are one of the most popular meats in the world (behind goat, oddly enough).

[Tabasco_Dave]

18. Lamb shoulder chops are all I can afford

I Cook them on the griil

[Recursion]

21. Do you have a middle eastern/Indian grocery store near you?

If so you can probably get both mutton and goat pretty cheaply there.

[Marthe48]

22. S.E. Ohio

Not a lot of ethnic stores near. I have friends who order lamb from a place in Columbus.

[Recursion]

23. Coshocton has one of the best Lebanese butchers I've ever been to

Though that may be far from you.

[Marthe48]

24. A little far

We have gotten in the habit of driving as little as possible, trying to be green any way we can