FRESH IOWA LAMB FOR SALE

            In 2009 we purchased nine polypay ewes for our son, Eric’s FFA project; and this year of 2013 we are lambing out 61 ewes, mostly off-spring of those first nine ewes with a few purchased ewes as well.  The polypay breed was developed in Idaho in the late 1960’s and early 1970’s by the Dr. Clarence Hulet and Reed Hulet; brothers from Idaho. They were dissatisfied with their current sheep herd and desired a breed which would be more prolific with better milking and mothering qualities, and which would also thrive on their rugged range conditions. They crossbred the Finn (highly prolific, early puberty, and short gestation), the Targhee (superior fleece quality, large body size, and long breeding season), the Dorset (superior carcass qualities, early maturity, and out of season breeding capabilities), and the Ramboillet (tough and hardy, productive, and quality fleece).  From these four breeds was the versatile and superior polypay sheep developed. We are also interested in the Ile de France breed which was developed in France and is very popular in Europe.  The lambs are supposed to feed out well with a good feed conversion; and we would like to try a ram on some of our ewes. If anyone has experience with this breed we would love to hear from you.
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The addition of sheep to our produce business has been a good fit.  The ewes are able to utilize our produce refuse and cover crops as a feed source.  We lamb from late January through April and by the time we get busy planting and weeding our ewes are off grazing in the pasture, and the wethers (male )lambs are frolicking in the sun, fattening themselves up and generally enjoying life.  At the present time we are keeping all of our female lambs for replacements and hope to have more for sale starting next year. The only veterinary input our lambs receive is the Clostridial C & D vaccine with added Tetanus. We have sold our produce directly to the consumer for many years, and feel this will be a good fit for our lamb as well. By selling directly to the customer we provide you with a superior carcass, decrease the price you would pay in the supermarket, utilize local meat processing plants, and keep more of the money in the community and on the farm.  Our lamb is corn-fed which produces the most succulent of meats. Lamb is naturally low in fat, and like all red meats, lamb is packed with nutrients; protein (with all nine amino acids present which makes it very easy to assimilate the protein into the body), riboflavin, zinc, the B vitamins, and so much more.  There is not a food group which can compete with the nutrient density of the red meats. There is much talk of the healthy Mediterranean diet with its high intake of olive oil and red wine; but people around the Mediterranean Sea also eat far more lamb than we do.
            Following are several helpful websites for those unfamiliar with preparing and eating lamb. There are numerous recipes plus charts on cuts of lamb, how to process lamb, and anything else you may desire to know about lamb.
1)      superiorfarms.com
2)      americanlamb.com
3)      iowasheep.com/lambrecipes
4)      australian-lamb.com/Lamb/Recipes (Order a free lamb recipe book called “A World of Flavor.”
5)      amazingribs.com (everything you want to know about grilling lamb and other meats).
6)      askthemeatman.com (much about cuts of lamb, where they come from, and how to prepare).
7)      countryfarm-lifestyles.com (description on how to kill and butcher lamb and goat taken from the book: “The Complete Book of Butchering, Smoking, Curing, and Sausage Making” by Philip Hasheider).
We use Woudsta’s Meat Market in Orange City, Iowa, and the Hudson, South Dakota meat markets for processing our lamb.  When you contact us we will give you their number and you can discuss how your meat will be processed directly with the meat market. This is approximately what a 140 lb lamb will yield: A 60-70 lb carcass or 45 to 50 lbs total meat.

7-8 lb loin chops
5-6 lb rack or rib chops
17-18 lb leg of lamb
8 lb shoulder roast
7-9 lb ground lamb