Flavour differences in meat from sheep grazed on pasture or winter forage crops

Abstract

SUMMARY Merino wethers grazed pure stands of rape, vetch or oats for 76 days in 1969 and 35 days in 1970. A laboratory taste panel found that the flavour characteristics of meat from these sheep differed significantly from those of meat from similar sheep grazing ryegrass-white-clover pasture or native pasture. Grazing on rape often produced a meat with a nauseating aroma and flavour, and with significantly lower acceptability of flavour than the pastures. There was no significant difference in the acceptability of flavour of meat from pasture and vetch fed sheep, although vetch gave an intense meaty flavour. Meat from sheep grazing oats possessed a pungent odour and flavour, but with a flavour only slightly, but significantly, less acceptable than that of meat produced on pasture.