And over the last 50 years there has been a significant fall in lamb and mutton consumption across Britain according to Becky Smith, a senior analyst at the Agriculture and Horticulture Development Board (AHDB), which represents farmers.
In 1980 the average UK household purchased 128g of sheep meat (lamb and mutton) per person, per week. In 2024 that same measure was down to 23g per person, per week.
Sheep farming has shaped the image many of us have when we picture somewhere like the Dales with drystone walls to keep livestock enclosed and green, rolling hills kept short by seasonal grazing.
But any desire to protect the heritage of one of the UK’s oldest agricultural industries is rubbing up against not just a diminishing appetite for sheep meat but also the question of whether some of our uplands might be better used to promote nature recovery and biodiversity.
All this raises the question of whether we have passed “peak sheep” in the UK – and, in turn, what that might mean for consumers. Will my children still be eating British lamb for their Sunday roast or in their baltis and bhunas in 25 years time?
And, what will happen to some of our most revered and beloved landscapes like the Lake District, Yorkshire Dales and Welsh mountains, and the people who live and work there?