Like New Zealand lamb, Australian lamb tends to come from smaller animals that have been entirely grass-fed on open pasture. It is leaner and has a deeper flavor than American lamb.
Domestic lamb is distinguished by its larger size and milder flavor, while lamb imported from Australia or New Zealand features a gamier taste.
Much like beef, the taste of lamb often stems back to where and how the animal lived. Australian lamb is nearly always pasture-raised, feeding on richly green grasses in open fields. This diet increases the lamb's overall fat content—the factor that typically gives lamb meat that signature gamey flavor.
Today Aussie lamb is also raised for consumption to a specific size and weight which produces a quality product that is less expensive than American domestic lamb. It is of a medium size and resembles that of American lamb the most.
Over 90% of Australian lambs are grassfed. While most of the remaining are grain assisted with access to grain in the paddock, a smaller number have been finished on a nutritionally balanced, high-energy ration for a specified minimum number of days. Australian organic lamb is raised as nature intended.
Western Australia (WA) produces some of the finest lamb, mutton and wool in the world and exports to over 100 countries. Sheep are produced in the south west of the State on broadacre farms, with world class welfare, food safety and environmentally responsible systems.
High prices are being driven by strong international demand from China and North America, combined with low flock numbers. A trade lamb currently costs nine per cent of the average weekly wage — its highest point since the early 1980s.
New Zealand lamb has traditionally been cheaper than British lamb because of lower farming costs, higher meat yields and a favourable exchange rate.
Japan is an Asian economic powerhouse and a country renowned for its high-quality beef. In 2021, Japan exported 4,388 tons of beef worth $491 million, making it the most valuable per kilogram. Some of the most well-known beef varieties in the world are from Japan, including the Kobe and Wagyu beef families.
American lamb is usually larger and has the highest quality and consistency. It is raised eating grass and finished with high quality grain. The "grain" makes a world of a difference. It also makes raising lamb a lot more expensive (American lamb can be twice as expensive as imported lamb).
Much of the beef's nutritional and flavor profile is contributed to how the cattle were raised. Australian beef is leaner by virtue of the All-Grass diet with a much more distinct fresh Grass-Fed flavor and sweeter aroma.
Are lamb and beef free-range? Most sheep and beef products in Australia come from animals that were born and raised in extensive (outdoor) environments, so they can also be termed free-range.
Lambs produced in the Cowra region have the reputation of being the best lambs in Australia. The genetics in the breeding are second to none.
The loin produces the most flavorful and tender cuts of Lamb in our opinion, due to its generous and tasty fat cap. Lamb Loin is located in between the ribs and sirloin. Lamb Loin Chops look like miniature bone-in T-Bone steaks or Porterhouse, that are straightforward to grill or pan-fry.
Sheep are not native to Australia—they were brought to Australia in 1788 by the First Fleet to provide food for the new colony. The majority of sheep were in mainland colonies and the numbers of sheep grew quickly as the colonists opened up land suitable for grazing.
No. Beef from Canada is not. But Australian lamb and beef are 100% guaranteed to be Halal. The Australian and New Zealand Meat industry caters to the needs of the different cultures and these overseas packers produce halal meat guaranteed to adhere to Islamic laws.
Yes. New Zealand has developed regulatory standards for Halal meat production. These standards are administered Ministry for Primary Industries (MPI), which is the Government regulatory agency that also administers New Zealand's food safety regulatory framework.
Victoria is Australia's largest sheep meat producer, producing around half (46%) of Australian sheep meat followed by NSW (28%).
Australian lamb is grass fed and finished, but some farmers are moving to a practice of grain finishing on feedlots, so the flavor is similar to American lamb. Carcass size is smaller than American lamb but larger than New Zealand varieties.
Australian beef, lamb and goat meat all contain 12 essential nutrients recommended for good health, including protein, iron, zinc, omega-3s, B vitamins (B12, B6, B5, niacin, riboflavin), magnesium, selenium and phosphorous.
China has more sheep than any other country in the world, with approximately 175 million of them living within its borders. The sheep population in China continues to grow, as the economy continues to expand. China has more than twice as many sheep as the second country on the list.
Rawlinna Station in Western Australia is the largest sheep station in Australia.
Texas has the most sheep and lambs in the United States followed by California and Colorado. The United States has 5.21 million head of sheep and lambs.