With restaurants struggling to source lamb, farmers in Utah are finding innovative ways to deliver their meat to those in need.

Visitors to the Box L Ranch, located just north of Moroni, Utah, will quickly find themselves surrounded by the constant sound of bleating sheep. The ranch sits about 100 miles south of Salt Lake City.

Last week, we had about a hundred lambs born every day,” says Wade Eliason, a rancher whose family has been in the business for six generations. Spring is peak season at the ranch, with most of the four thousand ewes giving birth in April and May.

While keeping the newborn lambs healthy and well-fed is always his top priority, the global pandemic has added an ongoing layer of stress to his work.

At Box L Ranch, the lambs are bottle-fed to ensure they thrive.

At Wade Eliason's Box L Ranch, the lambs are fed with bottles to ensure they get the care they need.

When the coronavirus pandemic first started making headlines, Eliason recalls thinking, 'Oh, okay, whatever.' But as time went on, he says, 'It became very real for each of us in different ways.'

The Challenge with Lamb

Across the country, sheep ranchers have seen a dramatic drop in demand for their lamb meat due to the pandemic.

The cause? Restaurant closures, halted cruise lines, and the cancellation of hotel banquets.

Before the pandemic, Salt Lake City's Table X served a dish of Morgan Valley Lamb Tartare with carrot raisins and a maple-worcestershire dressing.

The Morgan Valley Lamb Tartare with carrot raisins and maple-worcestershire dressing was a popular offering at Table X in Salt Lake City, prior to the pandemic.

Nick Fahs, chef and co-owner of Table X, notes, 'We’ve always had lamb on the menu since we first opened.' However, on March 14, he and his partner, chef Mike Blocher, closed their renowned restaurant. Unable to serve diners, they stopped buying fresh local produce and meats from Utah farmers.

According to Megan Wortman, the Executive Director of the American Lamb Board, restaurants like Table X and the broader service industry account for half of the lamb meat market. Both Fahs and Blocher agree that lamb and its ranchers are facing a significant downturn, as many consumers are hesitant to buy lamb in grocery stores and cook it at home.

'There’s a stigma around lamb,' says Blocher, who along with Fahs, was recently nominated as a James Beard Award semi-finalist. 'People just aren’t familiar with it and don’t know how to cook it,' he adds.

'Lamb is quite easy to overcook,' Fahs warns. 'It’s leaner than most meats, and if it’s cooked too long, it loses its tenderness.'

The key to grilling perfect lamb steaks is to avoid overcooking them.

Grilling lamb steaks successfully relies on one important factor: not overcooking them.

'Farmers and ranchers are facing a critical situation,' says Ron Gibson, president of the Utah Farm Bureau.

Gibson, a farmer of dairy and onions, emphasizes that ranchers and farmers urgently need to harvest, process, and get their products to consumers' kitchens.

'That’s how the idea for Farmers Feeding Utah came about,' says Gibson.

Farmers Feeding Utah is a program aimed at providing food to those in need across the state.

'We had the food, there were people in need, so we just needed to find a way to get it to them,' says Gibson.

Last week, the Farmers Feeding Utah program contributed over 105,000 pounds of lamb and 10,000 pounds of flour from Utah’s wheat fields to the Navajo Nation in the southern part of the state. Some of that lamb came from Wade Eliason’s ranch.

'It gives us pride, especially in such difficult times, to be able to help, even if it’s in a small way,' says Eliason.

'We’re working to reconnect the supply chain in a way that’s never been done before, aiming to show just how vital local farmers are to our communities,' says Gibson.

Lamb served at the family table

The chefs at Table X are on board with the idea. They hope the Farmers Feeding Utah initiative will provide a more direct link between local farmers and the service industry, creating a stronger connection between farmers, restaurants, and diners.

A delicious idea for home cooks: Slow-roasted leg of lamb, accompanied by smoked eggplant, tomatoes, a rich garden huckleberry jus, and a fresh herbs de Provence salad. Courtesy of Holly Tuckett/Flying Hat Media.

'From the very beginning, our goal has been clear: to understand where your food is coming from,' says Fahs. 'The issue is that the infrastructure to make that possible simply doesn't exist. It's an incredibly challenging task. The logistics are complicated. But it’s essential that we maintain safety. The less you rely on processing, delivery, or human contact, the safer the system will be.'

On May 1st, Utah lifted restrictions on dine-in services, allowing restaurants to reopen with social distancing guidelines in effect.

Table X plans to reopen in mid-summer and resume serving dishes made from ingredients sourced mainly from local Utah farms and gardens. Meanwhile, Fahs and Blocher encourage consumers to keep supporting local farmers, even if it means trying new things, like cooking lamb at home for the first time.

'Look for cuts with familiar names,' suggests Blocher. 'Start with ground lamb. And remember, be gentle with it.'

The chefs recommend starting with simple recipes like lamb burgers on the grill for home cooks who are new to preparing this delicate meat.

'When it comes to lamb, it's better to cook it on the rarer side compared to most other meats,' Fahs advises.

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