Conferences
Fostering Success: Strategies for Small Ruminant Meat Processing and Sensory Evaluation Workshops
Homero Salinas, Nadia Navarrete-Tindall, Gabriel Salinas-Luna, and Jorge Maldonado-Jaquez
Summary
The Lincoln University Cooperative Extension (LUCE) Meat Processing Workshop, held on October 5, 2023, drew 40 attendees, comprising small-scale sheep and goat farmers from Missouri and neighboring states. The event's primary objective was to empower farmers through comprehensive workshops covering meat processing, strategic business planning, marketing, pricing, and compliance with regulations. Noteworthy participants, such as the Coopers from Cooper Farms, sought innovative strategies to counter declining goat prices. Their proposed approach involves direct marketing to consumers, eliminating intermediaries for enhanced profitability. The workshop explored the intricacies of direct marketing, featuring insights from Lauren Carter, SBDC center director. Jennifer Lutes, MU Extension Field Specialist in Agricultural Business, provided valuable insights into meat pricing and conducted a meat-cutting demonstration, emphasizing the feasibility of independent processing with minimal tools. After the workshop, a sensory evaluation was conducted on November 27. 2023 at FINCA Lincoln University assessed the preferences for grilled sheep, goat, and beef among 70 participants with diverse demographics. Statistical analyses, including Kruskall-Wallis and Friedman tests, unveiled significant differences in consumer acceptance and preferences. Goat meat flavor received the highest scores, while sheep meat scored lower across multiple attributes. Correlation analyses underscored positive relationships between certain attributes, emphasizing the significance of flavor, texture, and appearance in consumer preferences. The study concludes by advocating for further findings into taste preferences and specific meat characteristics to enhance market offerings, leveraging the valuable insights from the Meat Processing Workshop and the subsequent sensory evaluation.
Details
| Conference | 2024 Extension Risk Management Education National Conference |
| Presentation Type | 30-minute Concurrent |