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A Comparison of the Hennessy Lamb Probe, Ruler Probe and Visual Fat Scores for Use in Sheep Carcass Classification

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  21 November 2017

J P Chadwick ,
A J Kempster  and
D L M Homer
J P Chadwick
Affiliation:
Meat and Livestock Commission, PO Box 44, Queensway House, Bletchley, Milton Keynes, MK2 2EF
A J Kempster
Affiliation:
Meat and Livestock Commission, PO Box 44, Queensway House, Bletchley, Milton Keynes, MK2 2EF
D L M Homer
Affiliation:
Meat and Livestock Commission, PO Box 44, Queensway House, Bletchley, Milton Keynes, MK2 2EF
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Extract

  1. 1 Visual assessments of subcutaneous fat cover are used in the Meat and Livestock Commission's Sheep Carcass Classification Scheme to estimate meat yield. (Details of the scheme have been given by Meat and Livestock Commission, 1980.) The scheme is operated in over 100 abattoirs and covers approximately 0.25 of the GB kill. Objective measures of fatness may improve the precision of predicting carcass composition, aid standardisation and stimulate the uptake of the scheme by creating greater confidence.

  2. 2 Previous MLC trials with either a simple Ruler Probe or equipment developed for use in pig carcass classification such as optical or automatic-recording probes have indicated only moderate success with sheep carcasses. The precision achieved with probe measurements was no better than visual scores, but additional precision resulted from combining both techniques (Kempster, Chadwick, Cue, Grantley-Smith, 1986).

Type
Carcass Quality
Information
Proceedings of the British Society of Animal Production (1972) , Volume 1986 , March 1986 , pp. 39
Copyright
Copyright © The British Society of Animal Production 1986

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References

Meat and Livestock Commission (1980) Commercial Sheep Production Yearbook, 1979-80. MLC, Bletchley, Milton Keynes.Google Scholar
Kempster, A.J., Chadwick, J.P., Cue, R.I. and Grantley-Smith, M.P., (1986). The estimation of sheep carcass composition from fat and muscle thickness measurements taken by probes. Meat Science (in press).CrossRefGoogle Scholar