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Graphic: An Encyclopaedia of New Zealand 1966.

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This information was published in 1966 in An Encyclopaedia of New Zealand, edited by A. H. McLintock. It has not been corrected and will not be updated.

Up-to-date information can be found elsewhere in Te Ara.

LAMB AND MUTTON PRODUCTION

Contents


Stratification of the Industry

The development of the export trade in frozen meat has resulted in the evolution of a distinct pattern of organisation which is referred to as the “stratification” of the sheep industry. The pattern arose primarily through the establishment of specialised fattening farms on which rams of the fat-lamb breeds are used and all of their progeny slaughtered. As no ewe lambs are retained for breeding, the fat-lamb farmers have to replace their ewe flocks by purchase from breeding flocks located on the less fertile hill country. This stratification results in the full use of the fertile land for fattening rather than having much of it used for breeding and rearing replacement stock.

(a) The fattening farms. These farms are generally located on land which is of high fertility, either naturally, or produced by topdressing. Country of this type is usually flat to undulating in topography, and tends to be concentrated on the coastal plains and river valleys of both islands, e.g., the Waikato basin, the Poverty Bay flats, the Hawke's Bay, Manawatu, Canterbury, and Southland plains. These are typical areas of concentration of fat-lamb farming, although it is undertaken wherever suitable land is available. Climatic conditions vary widely from warm and moist in parts of the North Island, to fairly cold and dry in parts of the South Island. This influences the type of feed produced; in the North Island it is normal to rely on pasture as a sole diet, while in the drier areas of the South Island it is necessary to grow special crops, such as rape, for fattening lambs, and in colder areas to grow crops for supplementing the ewe flock feeding over the winter.

In the North Island, the ewes of the fat-lamb flocks are predominantly of Romney breeding. They are bought in either as five- or six-year-old cast-for-age ewes or as young ewes (about 17 months of age) surplus to requirements from hill country flocks. In the former case, they are retained for one or two seasons on the fattening farm and are then sold for slaughter. In the latter case they spend all of their breeding life in the fat-lamb flock before being sold for slaughter. Purchase of the ewes is either by private treaty or more commonly at the annual ewe fairs held in January and February. The rams used are mainly of the Southdown breed, although larger breeds such as the Suffolk and South-Suffolk are occasionally used.

In the South Island the same pattern is followed but the ewes available are more mixed in type (apart from Southland where conditions in many ways resemble the North Island). Halfbred, Corriedale, Romney crossbred, and threequarter-bred ewes are all included. Although the Southdown ram is widely used, Border Leicester, Suffolk, South-Suffolk, and Southdown × Border Leicester rams are common.

Fattening farms vary considerably in area and in the size of flock carried. A flock of 1,000–1,200 ewes is commonly regarded as a one-man unit. The average range in carrying capacity is from three to six ewes wintered, although figures of eight and more ewes to the acre are known. Lambing percentages are variable but average from 100 to 120 lambs per 100 ewes mated. The aim of the farmer is to sell a high proportion of these lambs fat off their mothers at carcass weights around 28–36 lb. In the North Island, cattle are normally purchased in the spring to control excess pasture growth and are fattened, if possible, by the autumn. On some properties, store wether lambs from the hill-breeding flocks may also be bought in for fattening. The amount of meat produced per acre on fattening farms averages about 120–140 lb per acre, while a level of 250 lb per acre has been shown to be a reasonable target to aim at on a well-managed farm.

It is estimated that there are approximately 14,000 fattening farms in New Zealand.

(b) The hill country farms. This type of farming is practised extensively over the wide range of hill country in both islands. In the North Island the sheep are mainly of the Romney breed. The stock carried consists of a mixed-age flock of breeding ewes, ewe hoggets for replacements, and rams. Where part of the property is of poor quality, wethers may also be carried. In the South Island, either Corriedale, Halfbred, or Romney cross sheep are run. In both cases, the products sold are wool (which usually represents 50 per cent or more of the total farm income), some fat wether lambs, store lambs for fattening and, of most importance, cast-for-age ewes and surplus two-tooth ewes which are purchased by fat-lamb farmers. Where wethers are carried, fat wethers will also be available for sale.

Thus, these farms are important not only because they supply breeding ewes to the fattening farms but also because they make a direct contribution to lamb and mutton production.