Benefits of Eating Grass Finished Lamb

By Angie Mentink

*Sheep have the highest CLA levels of all animals!

*Sheep raised on pasture have twice as much lutein, 14% less fat, and about 8% more protein compared to grain-fed lamb

*Lamb is an excellent source of Vitamin B 12 and a good source of niacin

*Zinc and selenium are found in high amounts

*Lamb is rich in iron, mostly in the form of heme iron, which is highly bio available

*Often people that cannot tolerate beef do well with lamb!

Our Story

Our story with lamb began after we were blessed with our sixth child in February of 2015. Our family has struggled with food allergies for over 8 years and this baby didn’t seem to tolerate anything I was eating. My sweet lactation nurse who had been in a similar situation with her baby brought us a lamb roast knowing that this was something she was able to eat with her baby. A few of our family members had tried lamb once before and seemed to like it. It wasn’t something we really considered eating, nor did we have a desire, but since it was given to us we tried it without much expectation. We cooked it with rosemary and found that we all loved it!! This was one food that I was able to eat without any problems. It was the least allergenic meat on my list. I was determined to buy more! I called everyone on the Eat Wild list for Nebraska, but everyone was sold out. I couldn’t find good quality lamb anywhere. That’s when we decided to buy our own herd and raise it so we would have plenty for our family and we could sell it and bless others with it. Our family has been truly blessed by our sheep! They seem to require more work, but we truly enjoy it. We love to watch the lambs playing on the hill. It really puts a smile on our face. Apparently this has been the case for others driving down our road as well.

Our Breed

We bought registered Katahdin sheep in the spring of 2015. We did a lot of research and found that this breed is hardy, adaptable, low maintenance, and produces superior meat.  Lambs produce a high quality, well-muscled carcass that is naturally lean and consistently offers a very mild flavor. They are medium-sized and efficient on pasture.  Ewes have great mothering ability and lamb easily. The lambs are born vigorous and alert. Katahdins are docile so they are easily handled and they exhibit moderate flocking instinct. Katahdins are also significantly tolerant of internal and external parasites. In cold weather, they grow a very thick winter coat, which then sheds during warm seasons.  Their smooth hair coat and other adaptive characteristics allow them to tolerate heat and humidity well. We will not have to shear them since they don’t produce a fleece.

How We Raise Our Sheep

We are raising our sheep beyond organic standards. This is how we have been raising animals for ourselves for the last 10 plus years. Our sheep do not receive immunizations, medications, dewormers, or grains. We are offering free-choice minerals such as kelp and salt. We are working to improve our soil health, and we never use artificial fertilizers, insecticides, or herbicides, this includes our own yard! We allow the lambs to be with their moms long past what is recommended for weaning age. This allows a low stress environment, and we have witnessed excellent growth and health in our lambs every year. We have gone out of our way to ensure lambs get mom’s milk, even going as far as gently holding new moms so baby could suck for the first couple weeks. We are using a rotational grazing system, and move the sheep along with the cows daily. The sheep are so quiet and content in this environment. The Lord has put it on our hearts to bless others with these high quality products and our goal is to continue to improve our management skills, soil health, and not sacrifice quality for a profit. We believe we are called to be good stewards of our animals and this land that God has entrusted to us for this short time and pray that we will be a blessing to our customers.