Butchery News
Leaders in the butchery industry have warned against using apprenticeships as a replacement for offering staff a competitive wage.
A Meat Trades Journal online survey found that around 70% would consider taking on more apprentices in response to rising minimum wages. Announced in the Budget earlier this year, the National Living Wage will increase to £7.20 as of 1 April 2016. This will increase further in 2020 to £9, for those aged 25 and over. This comes as government approval to launch a brand new ‘Trailblazer’ apprenticeship scheme for butchery was given earlier this month.
Advocate for Apprenticeships, Lucianne Allen of Aubrey Allen said it was vital to pay a fair wage to those in the industry and that apprentices should be seen as an opportunity to teach a craft rather than cut costs. Aubrey Allen currently has seven apprenticeships in its business and is looking to take on more in the near future.
“Butchery is a fantastic craft but a hardworking one and there’s no point in having apprentices if they don’t feel that they have a future in an industry that will invest in them long-term. We have to make ourselves competitive as employers and that includes offering a competitive wage.”
She said that apprenticeships should still be considered by those looking to attract new people to the industry. “Apprenticeships are a fantastic opportunity to be paid while you train, when previously a person would have had to pay to learn, but they are certainly not a substitute for experienced staff.”
Noel Collett, chief executive officer of the Crawshaw Group agreed businesses should not use apprentices as a cheap option. The group is currently on a recruitment drive and hopes to create 2,500 jobs over the next five years. “The National Living Wage will clearly put many businesses under financial pressure. However, when looking to recruit quality staff with a specific skill set, businesses like ours will need to plan accordingly and pay the correct level,” he said.
“On the topic of apprenticeships, we view the scheme as a great mechanism for introducing new people into the butchery industry to develop a new career, irrespective of their qualification or experience, and would not use the scheme as a cost-cutting exercise. They are two very different challenges and businesses should invest in the people resource by paying them a fair wage.”
Halal specialist KFQ Meats has extended its ‘Exotique’ offering with a new range of spiced quarter-pounder burgers.
The new products, to be launched tomorrow (21 March 2015), on the KFQ website, include, Thai, Moroccan, South African, Portuguese Piri Piri and Mexican flavours.
“The Exotique range is aimed squarely at customers who are looking for convenience foods at the luxury end of the market,” explained KQF managing director Faruk Vali.
“The burgers are considerably larger than usual and they contain 90% lean beef. We’ve developed them for consumers who want something really satisfying for special family occasions, and for professional caterers who want to differentiate themselves on the basis of size, quality and flavour,” Vali said.
The Exotique range was originally designed for the export market and has proved popular in France and other European countries. “European consumers have a preference for milder flavours, so although the Exotique burgers and kebabs are based on authentic Indian recipes, they deliver less chilli heat,” KFQ explained.
The move also integrates with the launch of KQF’s Jumbo range of quarter-pounders. This combines KQF’s existing Texan burgers with a new ‘Great British’ range.
Weighing 110g each, the burgers are available in beef, chicken and lamb.
The Exotique products round out the KFQ burger range, as Vali explained: “With the launch of the Exotique and Jumbo ranges, we can now offer burger-lovers an end-to-end selection, starting with the standard 55g family size Classic. Above that, we have the 80g Chunky burger, the 110g Jumbo and the 220g Exotique at the top end.”
Despite only trading for a year, butcher’s shop Premier Cuts Lanark has agreed a substantial contract with a local hotel.
The Lanarkshire butcher’s will supply steaks to the newly renovated Tinto House Hotel near Biggar, after it impressed with its locally sourced produce.
Brian Robinson, managing director of Tinto House Hotel, said it was a pleasure to work with such an exciting new company: “With their produce sourced locally, the quality cuts will reflect the quality of dishes Tinto House Hotel serves to diners in our restaurant. We hope to continue building local relationships – Lanarkshire has so much to offer.”
Gerry Grant, manager of Premier Cuts Lanark, said: “As a new business, all new contracts are good for the company, but we are particularly excited to have been selected by a local business with such a rich heritage like Tinto House Hotel. It’s a great start to 2015 for Premier Cuts Lanark and we look forward to working with them to serve up the quality taste of Lanarkshire to their guests.”
A Northern Irish butcher’s has won a European competition with its products at the Sausage Awards in Normandy, France.
O’Kane Meats, based at Claudy in Co Derry, won Champion of Britain and Ireland category in the annual competition, becoming the first Northern Ireland butchery business to do so. The butcher’s then went on to win the excellence award for its chicken and smoked bacon sausage in the European Creative Sausage category, as well as the top award for its grilled Irish pork sausage.
Michael O’Kane said: “We’re really delighted to have won two very prestigious awards which recognise quality and innovation.
“We’ve been in business since 1989 and have won more than 100 product awards, including Irish trophies for our sausages. Winning this award in the face of such intense competition is a marvelous achievement for the entire team at O’Kane Meats.
“We had heard about the awards over the years and decided to put forward some products to see how they would get on with this expert judging panel.”
The competition featured sausage-makers and charcuterie specialists from all around Europe, and was organised by the Commanderie des Fins Goustiers du Duché d’Alençon. It was launched in 1973 to help promote local food producers in Normandy, before being expanded to focus on artisan and small producers of meat and sausages across Europe.
Two other Northern Irish butcher’s businesses also picked up awards: Clogher Valley Meats, Clogher, Co Tyrone –- winners of Meat Trades Journal Northern Irish Butcher’s Shop of the Year – and McAtamney Butchers in Ballymena, Co Antrim, in both the creative sausage and grilled pork sausages categories.
The Bakers’ and Butchers’ Autumn Fair 2014 saw butchers and exhibitors from across the country gather for a day of networking and competition.
Held in Newark, Nottinghamshire, the fair hosted the National Pie Competition and the Champion of Champions sausage competition. Craig Finch from Craig Finch Butchers was crowned sausage champion for the second consecutive year. Meanwhile, Pork Pie of the Year went to Simon Haigh, Bolster Moor Farm Shop; Savoury Pie of the Year to Simon Haigh, Bolster Moor Farm Shop; Steak and Kidney Pie of the Year was awarded to Trevor Fairburn, Trevor Fairburn Butchers; and finally Pasty of the Year went to Robert Bowring, R Bowring Farmers & Butchers.
Television presenter Keith Chegwin presented the winners with their trophies while providing some light entertainment for visitors. Chegwin told Meat Trades Journal the competitions were a great way to celebrate the industry. Talking about his local butcher, Chegwin said: “I am not a real fan of the supermarket cuts, which is awful to say, they might advertise reasonable steak or what have you, but it’s just reasonable – it’s not very good. But if you find a good butcher, they can give you good advice.”
Throughout the day the centre stage, sponsored by the Dalesman Group, who also presented a demonstration on its new range of sauces, played host to a range of talks about how to make the most out of your butchery business, including: Sam Flynn, The Social Media Success Maker; Matthew Southam, Eblex & Stefan Porter, Market Porter, on the benefits of trading online; Stephen Hallam, Dickinson & Morris on What is an authentic Melton Mowbray pork pie?; and Steve Derrick from Lucas Ingredients on how to get profit from pork pies using Lucas’ ingredients.
Ed Bedington, editor of MTJ, which co-organised the event with sister title British Baker, hailed the day a success and looked forward to next year: “The Butchers’ and Bakers’ Fair is always a popular attraction and this autumn’s event proved no different. There was a great mix of speakers, exhibitors and competitions, which drew butchers from far and wide.
“We were delighted with the attendance and the interaction across the trade and I think a great day was had by all. We now look forward to organising next year’s event, which we will aim to make bigger and better yet, building on the success of the Newark show.”