I. Growth and carcass quality

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Abstract
Some aspects of lamb performance and carcass composition were investigated using Suffolk cross (Border Leicester-Romney cross) lambs grown to produce carcasses weighing 20-30 kg. Wether Lambs on pasture were compared with lambs receiving either barley-based pellets or a diet containing high levels of protected polyunsaturated fat. The pasture-fed lambs grew considerably more slowly than lambs in the other 2 groups. Lambs receiving the protected polyunsaturated fat did not grow as fast as those in the grain-fed group and their carcasses contained more fat and less muscle than those of pasture-fed lambs. The differences in overall fatness between the pasture- and grain-fed groups were difficult to assess because the pasture-fed lambs had significantly more fat in some depots (omental, kidney and pelvic, intramuscular), but significantly less in the subcutaneous depot. Comparing ram and wether lambs on pasture showed inconsistent growth advantages for the rams. The rams produced significantly leaner carcasses although this advantage was partly off-set by their lower dressing-out percentages.

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