Editing Lamb and mutton (section)

== Classifications and nomenclature ==
[[File:Lamb chops 2014-03-06 12-39.jpg|thumb|[[Meat chop|Lamb chops]] with [[new potatoes]] and green beans]]
The definitions for lamb, hogget and mutton vary considerably between countries. Younger lambs are smaller and tenderer. Mutton is meat from a sheep over two years old, and has tougher flesh. In general, the darker the colour, the older the animal.

=== Britain, Australia, and New Zealand ===
;Lamb: A young sheep which is less than one year old. From 1 July 2019, the Australian definition is, "an ovine animal that: (a) is under 12 months of age, or (b) does not have any permanent [[Incisor|incisor teeth]] in wear". This new definition meant that Australian farmers could extend the term "lamb" by another month.<ref name=SPA>[http://sheepproducers.com.au/lamb-definition/ "Australia's New Definition of Lamb – What You Need to Know"] (4 July 2019). ''SheepProducers.com.au''. Retrieved 28 September 2019.</ref> This followed a similar definition change in New Zealand in 2018. In Britain the definition is still "0 permanent incisor teeth". A permanent incisor tooth is said to be '''"in wear"''' if it protrudes further than the nearest [[Deciduous teeth|milk teeth]].<ref name=SPA/>
;Hogget: A sheep of either sex having no more than two permanent incisors in wear.<ref name="MD">Delbridge, Arthur, "The Macquarie Dictionary", 2nd ed., Macquarie Library, North Ryde, 1991</ref> The term is also used to refer to meat from the aforementioned animal. In the UK, it means animals that are 11 to 24 months old, while Australian butchers use the term for animals that are 13 to 24 months old.<ref>[https://www.farmison.com/community/blog/difference-lamb-hogget-mutton What is the difference between lamb, hogget & mutton?] Farmison & Co (British online butcher). Retrieved 27 August 2022.</ref><ref>[https://borderparkorganics.com.au/lamb-versus-hogget-meat-difference/ Lamb versus Hogget Meat: What's the Difference?] Border Parks Organics (Australian online butcher). Retrieved 27 August 2022.</ref> Still common in farming usage and among speciality butchers, it is now a rare term in British, Australian and New Zealand supermarkets, where meat of all sheep less than two years old tends to be called "lamb".
;Mutton: The meat of a female (ewe) or castrated male (wether) sheep having more than two permanent incisors in wear.

===Italy===
[[File:Abbacchio Pasquale.jpg|thumb|''[[Abbacchio]]'' is consumed throughout [[central Italy]] as an [[Easter in Italy|Easter]] and [[Christmas in Italy|Christmas]] dish.<ref name="abbacchioromanoigp-prodotto"/><ref name="Treccani"/><ref name=":0"/> It is a product protected by the [[European Union]] with the [[Geographical indications and traditional specialities in the European Union#Protected geographical indication (PGI)|PGI]] mark.<ref name="PGI"/>]]

In [[Romanesco dialect]], the offspring of the sheep who is still suckling or recently weaned is called ''[[abbacchio]]'', while the offspring of the sheep almost a year old who has already been shorn twice is called ''agnello'' ({{literally|lamb}}).<ref name="romaincampagna">{{cite web|url=https://www.romaincampagna.it/wp-content/uploads/2018/04/impara-abbacchio.pdf|title=Osservatorio sulla spesa di Roma|access-date=8 January 2024|language=it}}</ref> This distinction exists only in the Romanesco dialect.<ref name="romaincampagna"/> ''Abbacchio'' is consumed throughout [[central Italy]] as an [[Easter in Italy|Easter]] and [[Christmas in Italy|Christmas]] dish.<ref name="abbacchioromanoigp-prodotto">{{cite web|url=http://www.abbacchioromanoigp.it/Il_prodotto_tp5_pg161.aspx|title=Abbacchio Romano IGP|publisher=abbacchioromanoigp.it|access-date=10 June 2014|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140714115702/http://www.abbacchioromanoigp.it/Il_prodotto_tp5_pg161.aspx|archive-date=14 July 2014}}</ref><ref name="Treccani">{{cite web|url=http://www.treccani.it/vocabolario/abbacchio/|title=abbàcchio|publisher=Vocabolario – [[Treccani]]|access-date=15 January 2016}}</ref><ref name=":0">{{Cite web |date=19 July 2019|title=Abbacchio |url=https://www.lacucinaitaliana.com/glossary/abbacchio |access-date=1 November 2022|website=La Cucina Italiana |language=en-US}}</ref> It is a product protected by the [[European Union]] with the [[Geographical indications and traditional specialities in the European Union#Protected geographical indication (PGI)|PGI]] mark.<ref name="PGI">{{cite web|url=https://www.qualigeo.eu/prodotto-qualigeo/abbacchio-romano-igp/|title=Abbacchio Romano IGP|publisher=qualigeo.eu|access-date=7 January 2024|language=it}}</ref>

Throughout [[central Italy]], including Sardinia, [[pastoralism]] was the main source of meat. Since ancient times, ''abbacchio'' has been one of the staple foods of the [[Lazio]] region, especially for rural communities, whose consumption at the table was considerable.<ref name="romaincampagna"/> The tradition of consuming ''abbacchio'' spread in ancient times where mainly adult [[sheep]] were slaughtered. The slaughter of ''abbacchio'' was forbidden except during the [[Easter in Italy|Easter]] and [[Christmas in Italy|Christmas]] periods, and until June. Over the centuries, given the importance of the food, around 100 recipes for preparing lamb have been developed in Lazio.<ref name="romaincampagna"/> Given the importance of ''abbacchio'' in social life, historical events dedicated to ''abbacchio'' are still organized in the Lazio region today, i.e. ''[[Sagra (festival)|sagre]]'', country festivals and popular events.<ref name="romaincampagna"/> In ancient times, sheep was eaten during work in the countryside, while ''abbacchio'' was consumed only during the Easter holidays.<ref name="romaincampagna"/>

=== South Asia ===
[[File:Mutton briyani from Little India, Singapore - 20130719.jpg|thumb|Indian-style [[mutton biryani]]]]
The term "mutton" is applied to [[goat meat]] in most countries of South Asia, and the goat population has been rising. For example, [[mutton curry]] is always made from goat meat. It is estimated that over a third of the goat population is slaughtered every year and sold as mutton. The domestic sheep population in India and the Indian subcontinent has been in decline for over 40 years and has survived at marginal levels in mountainous regions, based on wild-sheep breeds, and mainly for [[wool]] production.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Sheep (new, with animal welfare information) {{!}} Infonet Biovision Home. |url=https://infonet-biovision.org/AnimalHealth/Sheep |access-date=17 June 2022 |website=infonet-biovision.org}}</ref>

=== United States ===
In the early 1900s, mutton was widely consumed in the United States, but mutton consumption has declined since [[World War II]].<ref name="Food For Thought">{{cite news |title=After WW2 mutton fell out of favor in the U.S. |url=https://www.npr.org/sections/thesalt/2019/11/26/781652195/after-wwii-mutton-fell-out-of-favor-in-the-u-s-can-it-make-a-comeback |website=NPR |date=26 November 2019 |access-date=17 March 2020|last1=Fogarty |first1=Lisa }}</ref> {{Asof|2010}}, most sheep meat in the United States comes from animals in between 12 and 14 months old,<ref name="USDA Economic Research Service">{{cite web |title=Lamb Sector at a Glance |url=https://www.ers.usda.gov/topics/animal-products/sheep-lamb-mutton/sector-at-a-glance/ |website=United States Department of Agriculture |access-date=17 March 2020}}</ref> and is called "lamb"; the term "hogget" is not used.<ref>Merriam-Webster Dictionary, [http://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/hogget ''s.v.'' hogget] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171107112439/https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/hogget |date=7 November 2017 }}: "chiefly British"</ref> Federal statutes and regulations dealing with food labeling in the United States permit all sheep products to be marketed as "lamb."<ref>{{USCFR|7|65|190}}</ref> [[USDA grade]]s for lamb are only partly a function of the animal's age. Animals up to 20 months old may meet the quality of the "USDA prime" grade depending on other factors, while "USDA choice" lamb can be of any age.<ref name="USDA Agricultural Marketing Service">{{cite web |title=Yearling Lamb |url=https://www.ams.usda.gov/sites/default/files/media/CarcassLambStandardFigure1.pdf |website=United States Department of Agriculture |access-date=17 March 2020}}</ref>
"Spring lamb" is defined by the USDA as having been slaughtered between March and October.<ref name="USDA Food safety and inspection service">{{cite web |title=Lamb from farm to table |url=https://www.fsis.usda.gov/wps/portal/fsis/topics/food-safety-education/get-answers/food-safety-fact-sheets/meat-preparation/focus-on-lambfrom-farm-to-table/ct_index |website=United States Department of Agriculture |access-date=17 March 2020}}</ref>

=== Other types ===
;Suckling lamb or milk-fed lamb: Meat from an unweaned lamb, typically 4–6 weeks old and weighing 5.5–8&nbsp;kg; this is typically unavailable in countries such as the United States and the United Kingdom. The flavour and texture of milk-fed lamb when grilled (such as the small lamb cutlets known as ''[[Cuisine of Spain|chuletillas]]'' in Spain) or roasted (''[[Lechazo de Castilla y León|lechazo]] asado'' or ''cordero lechal asado'') is generally thought to be finer than that of older lamb, and fetches higher prices.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.speleogroup.org/sg2012.html#20.06|title=Speleogroup – sg2012|work=speleogroup.org}}</ref> The areas in northern Spain where this can be found include [[Asturias]], [[Cantabria]], [[Castile and León]], and [[La Rioja (autonomous community)|La Rioja]]. <!-- In the United Kingdom, '''lamb''' generally implies older animals, slaughtered between 3 and 9 months. --> Milk-fed lambs are especially prized for [[Easter]] in Greece, when they are roasted on a spit.
;Young lamb: A milk-fed lamb between six and eight weeks old
;Spring lamb: A lamb, usually three to five months old, born in late winter or early spring and sold usually before 1 July (in the northern hemisphere).
;Sucker lambs: A term used in Australia<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.sheepcrc.org.au/index.php?id=1353|title=Australian Sheep CRC|work=sheepcrc.org.au}}</ref> — includes young milk-fed lambs, as well as slightly older lambs up to about seven months of age which are also still dependent on their mothers for milk. Carcasses from these lambs usually weigh between 14 and 30&nbsp;kg. Older weaned lambs which have not yet matured to become mutton are known as old-season lambs.
;Yearling lamb: a young sheep between 12 and 24 months old
;Saltbush mutton: a term used in Australia for the meat of mature Merinos which have been allowed to graze on [[atriplex]] plants
;Salt marsh lamb: (Also known as 'saltmarsh lamb' or by its French name, ''[[agneau de pré-salé]]'') The meat of sheep which graze on [[salt marsh]] in coastal estuaries that are washed by the tides and support a range of salt-tolerant grasses and herbs, such as [[samphire]], sparta grass, [[sorrel]] and [[sea lavender]]. Depending on where the salt marsh is located, the nature of the plants may be subtly different. Salt marsh lamb has long been appreciated in France and is growing in popularity in the United Kingdom. Places where salt marsh lamb are reared in the UK include [[Harlech]] and the [[Gower Peninsula]] in Wales, the [[Somerset Levels]], [[Morecambe Bay]] and the [[Solway Firth]].<ref>Keating, Sheila."[http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/life_and_style/food_and_drink/article4198041.ece Food Detective: Salt Marsh Lamb] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20081013155445/http://timesonline.co.uk/tol/life_and_style/food_and_drink/article4198041.ece |date=13 October 2008 }}." ''The Times Online,'' 28 June 2008.</ref>
;Saltgrass lamb: A type of lamb exclusive to [[Flinders Island]] (Tasmania). The pastures on the island have a relatively high salt content, leading to a flavor and texture similar to saltmarsh lamb.<ref>Bastick, C. H. and Walker, M. G, Extent and impacts of Dryland Salinity in Tasmania. "[http://dpipwe.tas.gov.au/Documents/NLWA_Report_Vol1.pdf]" ''Department of Primary Industries, Water and Environment,'' August 2000.</ref>