The effect of different types of pasture on the organoleptic qualities of lambs

The palatability characteristics of carcasses of lambs grazed on either pure perennial ryegrass or Pure lucerne were studied in three experiments. Consumer preferences were ascertained in two experiments with untrained members of the public who scored the meat for flavour, tenderness and juiciness. The type of pasture had no significant effect on the palatability characteristics examined but the shoulder joints were significantly more juicy than the legs. In a third experiment, members of a trained taste punel were able to detect a significantly more intense flavour and odour from the casseroled twelfth rib chop of lucerne‐grazed lambs than that from lambs grazed on perennial ryegrass. Since the results from the consumer acceptance tests and the trained taste panel were inconsistent, it is concluded that both methods of assessing palatability should be carried out concurrently in any evaluation of meat quality.