Osteoarthritis (OA) and Osteochondritis Dissecans (OCD) are osteoarticular disorders that cause leg weakness, lameness, pain and suffering in companion animals, some farm animals and humans. OA is one of the most common age-related osteoarticular disorders in humans and dogs. In pigs, both OA and OCD are thought to arise from changes in the articular cartilage and growth plates within the synovial joints causing structural damage to joint tissues. Since these changes are not observed in the slow maturing wild boar, they are suggested to be a result of the modern intensive pig production industry which has very successfully selected pigs for rapid growth rates, large muscle mass and efficient feed conversion placing increased weight and mechanical stress on growth plates. The aim of this study was to establish canine and porcine articular cartilage explant models which are essentially tissue culture techniques for isolating and maintaining cartilage tissue ex vivo for subsequent assessment of potentially beneficial effects of specific phytonutrients. Bacterial lipopolysaccharide (LPS) was used as a catabolic mediator to create a culture model of joint inflammation mimicking the events that occur in late stages of OA and OCD. We then performed assays to determine if the dietary phytochemical ‘curcumin’ (derived from Curcuma longa) and the polyphenolic phytoalexin stilbene ‘resveratrol’ (found in red grapes, red wine, peanuts and some berries) are able to counteract the catabolic effects of LPS by inhibiting LPS stimulated release of cartilage matrix glycosaminoglycans (GAGs).