“Lamb is consumed [during] the whole year, but the strongest [season of consumption] is Easter and Christmas”, the president of the Regional Association of Goat and Sheep Breeders of the Azores (ARCOA), Aníbal Moura, told Lusa agency.

According to the director of ARCOA, which is based in the town of Porto, on the island of Santa Maria, lamb is sold and consumed locally and also on the neighbouring island of São Miguel.

Traditionally, the lamb is roasted in the oven, but “there are those who make a lamb rump” and a “traditional minced meat”, he said.

Stressing that “an increase in consumption” of Santa Maria lamb has been “noticed from year to year”, Aníbal Moura specified that two years ago there was a reduction in demand “but now we are starting to consume a little more , because lamb is one of the healthiest meats”.

The meat “is highly sought after and the Santa Maria lamb is different from other lambs” as it “has very good characteristics” due to the grazing, the terrain and the climate.

According to the association, lamb from the island of Santa Maria comes from young sheep less than one year old and is usually available “in different cuts, including leg, chop and neck”.

Aníbal Moura predicts that around Easter time they will be slaughtered and sold “around 100 lambs”, and the association, which buys the animals from its members, expects to sell between 50 and 60 lambs. The rest will be placed on the market through producers and butchers on the island of Santa Maria.

Annually, on average, on the easternmost island of the Azorean archipelago, between 600 and 700 lambs are slaughtered, he said.

The sheep population on the island of Santa Maria is currently around five thousand sheep for meat production and 130 for milk production, which belong to 60 producers.

The Regional Government of the Azores has started the application for PDO classification of typical Santa Maria lamb, with the president of ARCO admitting that the completion of the process “will be a reality in 2025”.

The classification of the lamb will allow the producer to gain added value and the consumer to know that they are consuming a quality product, according to the president of the association.