This web page was designed to inform 4-Hers, students, judging team members, producers, and consumers interested in knowing how a lamb gets from the processing plant to the grocery store. There are several components of a carcass that allow for the determination of such things as age, maturity, and sex. All of these are taken into consideration when determining a quality grade. More importantly, maturity characteristics can be used to determine the age of a carcass.
Age is divided into three categories.
A lamb carcass can be identified by the presence of break joints on the front shanks. The joint is moderately red, moist, and porous. The ribs of the carcass will vary in shape from round to moderately flat with some redness on the exposed surfaces. A young mutton carcass is characterized by spool joints on both front shanks or one spool joint and an imperfect break joint. The ribs are moderately wind and tend to be flat with slight to no redness.