Spare ribs under scrutiny as scientists probe hidden value of NZ sheep

Friday 11th November 2011

New Zealand scientists are to probe the value of what has been an open secret among veterinarians - some sheep have more ribs than others.

A Primary Growth Partnership research consortium FarmIQ, is to investigate the significance, and potential worth, of lambs that have an extra, floating rib.

FarmIQ, a collaboration of meat industry sector participants and government in a seven-year research programme to increase the industry’s profitability, has a floating rib project as one of its targets.

Sheep meat exports were worth $2.9 billion in the 12 months ended June 30.

Landcorp is one of the consortium’s members, and its chief executive Chris Kelly says the presence of an extra rib has been known for a number of years by veterinarians carrying out post-mortems.

With meat processing plants now possessing inline X-ray machines that can automatically scan lamb carcasses, the opportunity exists to see how common the feature is. Unlike other lamb ribs, the extra rib does not form a chop, and its worth is yet to be proven.

“It might extend the muscle on the upper back,” says Kelly, which may add to the value of the entire lamb by increasing its total yield. “But there’s still a lot of work to do.”

He says the FarmIQ consortium will also investigate the genetic inheritability of the trait.

This, along with a number of other farm management, breeding and processing factors, will help determine the best way to add more value to the sheep industry he says.

BusinessDesk.co.nz

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