| 63 Cannot speak highly enough of the breed Ewes ready for sale. Emma Bailey With its excellent meat yields, hardy constitution, intramuscular fat (IMF) and great fertility the New Zealand Hampshire is a high performance sheep breed to farm. Hampshire Ram Breeders Association chairman Mike Mouat cannot speak highly enough of the breed which he first got into in 1991 in Southland. “We had a few (Hampshire) ewes and went from there. When we moved to our farm it was rolling country and we needed a fatter breed. I was lucky Bill Thayer who had a fantastic stud (Granton Stud) took me under his wing and we went from there and started seeing fantastic results.” The Hampshire is increasingly becoming known for its Intramuscular fat (IMF) which greatly improves the taste of its meat, he said. “They are one of the only sheep breeds to have Intramuscular fat. It is another great strength and is comparable to Wagyu beef. The marbling of the fat in the muscle rather than on the outside adds greatly to the taste and tenderness. The breed has really taken off in Australia because of the IMF.” Meat with higher IMF produces less drip and water loss under the grill or in the pan, which makes it juicier. Alongside his wife Janeann on their 174 hectare stud farm Colbion Downs (alongside 80 leased hectares) near Gore they have a flock of around 100 ewes and keep about 30 rams for sale from December. By March/April the lambs are already weighing on average 70kg. The Hampshire is famed for quickly producing heavy quality lambs. “We had a guy over from Argentina who was interested in a buying a few rams. It’s a very popular breed over there because of its adaptability and meat yield. “We have fined the shoulder down (through breeding) and put the meat in the back quarter. Their fertility is terrific and nine times out of ten they will win any (meat) scanning competition.” Scanning involves using a CT scanner to assess the eye muscle area (EMA) of rams for meat yield. “It measures the eye of the chop and tells you the depth of fat as well. Last year we had two over 29 square cms and this year one over 32 square cms. The scanner couldn’t believe it.” There are 13 breeders in the association spread across the country. Because overall flock numbers are not big they need to keep an eye on bloodlines. “Genetics play a big role.” The breed arrived in New Zealand in 1861. For Mike after 35 years he is hanging up his boots with the stud going to Auction in March. This is on the back of a very successful weekend at the Gore A and P Show in February where his sheep won the Champion Hampshire Ram prize in the Meat Breed Section, Supreme Champion for the breed and the cup for Supreme Champion over all the breeds. “We had a guy over from Argentina who was interested in a buying a few rams. It’s a very popular breed over there because of its adaptability and meat yield.” RURAL SERVICES » Hampshire Ram Breeders Association Proudly Supporting Hampshire Ram Breeders Association Switzers Valley Transport Ltd “It has taken 35 years to win that cup. It was the same ram that scanned over 32 square cms. Its Colbion Downs ram 16 of 2024,” he said. Anyone interested in joining the Hampshire Ram Breeders Association, learning about the breed or purchasing rams or ewes can contact Mike on 027 480 9570 who will be able to connect you with the breeders around the country.
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