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Research
led by ADAS, sponsored by Defra and the Scottish Government through
the Sustainable Livestock Production LINK Programme, has found that
venison not only contains significantly less fat than other red
meats, but also comes up trumps in taste tests.
The research into 'Improved
Venison Quality', led by ADAS with the University of Bristol, and
with industry contributions from BDFA, Elmhirst Farmers, Holme Farmed
Venison, Waitrose Ltd and the Humane Slaughter Association,
considered the beneficial health properties of venison against
consumer perceptions of the meat.
Analysis of samples found that
fatty acids comprised only 1.2% of the fresh loin muscle weight -
one-third of that found in beef sirloin steaks, or a quarter of that
found in lamb chops. A similar advantage was seen in the neutral
lipids, with monounsaturated oleic acid found to be nine and eleven
times higher in beef and lamb respectively.
In addition, the proportion of
essential polyunsaturated fatty acids was found to be much higher
than in other red meats - six times higher for linoleic acid, and
between three and five times higher for linolenic acid.
While its popularity does not yet
compare to other red meats, the study found that perceptions were
very positive among those who had tried it, with consumer surveys
revealing that 87% of those who have eaten it would eat it again. By
far the most common reason cited was taste and flavour, closely
followed by health reasons.
Mervyn Davies, the project leader
at ADAS, explains: "As well as being very tasty, compared to
other red meats venison has real health benefits: not only is it
lower in fat, but it contains higher proportions of the
polyunsaturated fatty acids that the body needs. The ratio of
polyunsaturated to saturated acids is well above the desired health
threshold and much higher than in beef and lamb.
"The main reason that
participants had not yet tried venison was because they simply did
not know enough about it or where to buy it," said Mervyn. "There
is an untapped market here. These findings are great news for
Britain's farmed venison industry and will help to raise its profile
as a healthy, tasty alternative to other red meats."
There are currently 30,000 farmed
deer in the UK, producing around 10,000 carcasses or 500 tonnes of
farmed venison per year with a retail value of £4m. A similar
quantity is imported from countries such as New Zealand. The industry
has rapidly expanded from farm gate sales in the early 1990s and
several major UK supermarkets are now looking to sell the meat.
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