White Pyrenees Lamb Launches in Canada

Intercity Packers Meat & Seafood has proudly supplied the White Stripe Lamb program to our long term food service and retail customers in the Canadian market. We’re writing to share a brand update: beginning in August, our fresh lamb program will transition to our other brand, White Pyrenees Lamb, Victoria’s Finest.

White Pyrenees Lamb is premium succulent lamb sourced directly from the foothills of the Pyrenees Ranges. The Pyrenees region is located in the Central West of Victoria and is recognized for its rich, fertile and productive land, ideal for producing Australia’s finest quality lamb.

Before you get to know White Pyrenees Lamb, let’s review what is most important to you right now regarding this initial transition:

What is not changing

• The lamb itself and its attributes remain exactly the same.
  • 100% pasture fed Australian lamb
  • Genetically bred for superior eating quality
  • Naturally tender with a mild flavour profile.
  • Sourced, graded, and packed to the same rigorous standards you rely on.
• The product specifications, codes, quality standards and pack sizes you're ordering from Intercity Packers today.

What is changing

• Only the brand name and packaging will change, from White Stripe Lamb to White Pyrenees Lamb.
• White Pyrenees Lamb is a brand owned by White Stripe Foods and will be exclusively available through Intercity Packers for the Canadian market.

Why is the brand changing

• Although White Stripe has represented the product well in Canada, White Pyrenees Lamb is an established premium lamb brand across other international markets, and has been sought-after for many years
• By moving to the new brand name, we will build a stronger, more consistent, more transparent brand that reflects where the lamb truly comes from.

We appreciate your partnership and look forward to continuing to support your business with premium lamb under the White Pyrenees brand. Let’s take a deeper dive and discover the story behind White Pyrenees Lamb.

THE STORY

The White Pyrenees Lamb program has been developed over 20 years through specific breeding programs and the crossing of the highest quality bloodlines. The lambs are specifically selected to ensure high muscle yield, consistent eating quality, tenderness and mild flavor profile that can only be associated with White Pyrenees Lamb, “Victoria’s Finest”.

The Pyrenees Ranges, along with the Grampian Mountains, complete Australia’s geographical backbone – the Great Dividing Range. Explorers such as Thomas Mitchell, the first European recorded to travel through this district in 1836, were overwhelmed by the scenic beauty of the area with its lush grasslands and cool running streams. The Ranges reminded Mitchell of the Pyrenees in Europe, hence the name he gave them. In and around the Pyrenees Ranges and its foothills are microclimates and different soil characteristics that offer a wealth of variety to the farmers of the land. They consider it to be ‘the natural garden of Victoria’.

THE FARMS & FEED

White Pyrenees Lambs are grown on lush pastures in the Pyrenees region. We work closely with the farmers to raise lambs on a diet of all natural clovers, lucerne and rye pastures. Steady development is assured by a supplementary feeding regime of crushed natural grains such as barley, oats, pulses, wheat and natural vetch roughage. This provides the lamb with a high protein intake that is imperative in ensuring meat tenderness and flavour.

By rotating feeding regimes the farmers reduce the accumulation of excess fat tissue whilst continuing to produce intramuscular fat, commonly known as marbling. The end result is a consistent, high quality eating lamb.

All White Pyrenees Lamb are raised without antibiotics, are free from hormone growth promotants and fed a natural GMO free diet.

FARMER PROFILE

Charlie Koch
SECOND CROSS LAMB PRODUCER

Charlie and his family operate an extensive farming operation, located on the western side of the Pyrenees Ranges, traditionally known as the best grazing land for lambs in Australia due to ideal climates and premium natural pastures. Renowned for outstanding meat quality, superior taste and incredible tenderness, Charlie’s exceptional quality lambs are a result of precision selection crossing the best Poll Dorset rams with his second cross Dorset ewes.

THE BREEDS

The White Pyrenees “Prime” Lamb program has flourished due to its adaptability and suitability to Australia’s seasonal conditions. Using Australia’s base Merino flock as a backbone, we have worked to develop an exceptional “First Cross” female to form the nucleus of the Lamb program. This ewe is a cross between the Australia Merino ewe and genetically selected Border Leicester sires. The result is a large framed first cross female suitable for creating and mothering the prime lambs.

The next step in the program is to breed these females with selected European terminal sires, such as the White Suffolk or Poll Dorset. These sires are renowned for their superior meat-eating qualities and allow us to bring a consistent table lamb to Australia’s and the world's finest restaurants.  

In the pursuit of creating the finest table lamb we continue to explore new composite breeds to ensure diners have an exceptional eating experience every time.

FRONT OF HOUSE NOTES

White Pyrenees Lamb is premium succulent lamb sourced directly from the foothills of the Pyrenees Ranges of Australia. White Pyrenees Lambs are raised without antibiotics, are free from hormone growth promotants and are fed a natural GMO free diet.

CHEFS NOTES

Breed
Australian Merino ewe X genetically selected Border Leicester sires, resulting in the “First Cross” ewe.

“First Cross” ewe X White Suffolk or Poll Dorset sires, resulting in White Pyrenees Lamb.

Area
Pyrenees Ranges, Victoria

Feed
100% Pasture (all-natural clovers, lucerne and rye pastures) and crushed grains (barley, oats and natural vetch roughage. Naturally raised without antibiotics and free of hormone growth promotants (HGPs)

Grading
MSA graded. Average carcass weight 28kg

CHEF STORIES

Tom Hitchcock
Head Chef, Spirit House

For five years, I have consistently utilized White Pyrenees Lamb, and I’ve found its texture and flavour to be remarkably uniform. A key advantage is the lamb's fat, which is consistently clean, evenly distributed, and possesses a delicate yet persistent flavour that avoids being overpowering.

Diana Jorgo
Co-Head Chef, Dark Shepherd

Together with Vangjel Jorgo, I’ve worked with White Pyrenees Lamb across multiple kitchens, and it consistently delivers. At Dark Shepherd, its clean flavour, tender texture, and perfect fat content make it ideal for both Greek-style dishes and woodfire cooking—bold, honest, and always reliable.

Sergio Daniel Pacheco
Head Chef, Pompette

I’ve been using White Pyrenees Lamb for the past four years across Tassis Group venues, and it remains a standout. The clean fat and consistent quality make it ideal for refined cooking. At Pompette, its subtle flavour and perfect texture fit seamlessly into the French inspired dishes.

To review the full White Pyrenees Lamb product guide with product codes at Intercity Packers, flip the through the pages here: