Good Food Blog

Have a butcher's?

Posted at 11:30AM, 16 March 2011 by Carol Wilson - Food writer

Only a few years ago there were four butchers' shops in my town, now there's just one and sadly it's a pattern that's being repeated all over Britain. Increasing numbers of shoppers apparently prefer to buy meat and poultry in supermarkets, with the convenience of being able to buy everything under one roof.

Open quotationI want to know where my meat came from, how it was raised and where it was killedClose quotation

I always buy meat from my local butcher rather than the supermarket, as I know that the beef for instance will have been hung for longer, which improves the flavour and texture enormously. I can choose the breed of meat, ( saltmarsh lamb for example tastes completely different from other lamb) the thickness of the cut and which farm it has come from. I want to know where my meat came from, how it was raised and where it was killed. I know my meat comes from farms in the region, which helps the local economy too. In contrast, supermarket meat and poultry is often labelled simply 'Product of the EU'.

There's simply no comparison with supermarket meat when it comes to succulence and taste, although of course I don't expect an independent local butcher to be able to match the prices of a major supermarket; my local superstore currently has packs of four sirloin steaks for £8, which I wouldn't even consider buying as I know they'll be tough and flavourless.

I'm fortunate as my butcher frequently sells rare breed meat. Recently I tried Dexter beef, which has a greater level of fat marbling than that of supermarket beef. It's also darker, partly due to the breed and partly because the carcass is properly hung to produce a tender, better flavoured meat.

It's a good idea to get to know your butcher. Mine, like any good butcher, will cut meat to my requirements and if you tell him what you're cooking, he will suggest the best cut. He makes his own sausages (95% meat) is happy to weigh out 110g liver for someone living alone and minces beef as people ask for it too, so it's not sitting around in a tray all day long. I also know that if I give him notice he'll bone a leg of lamb - something a supermarket wouldn't be likely to do.

National Butchers' Week (13-20 March) was set up four years ago to raise awareness locally and increase their trade and also as a prospective career to young people. It's up to us, the consumers, to recognise that our butcher is the best place to buy locally produced, high quality meat. It's a depressing thought that if we don't support our local butchers they will disappear.

Do you use your local butcher?

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Comments

  • Binder photo meefymeef
    16 March 2011, 12:23PM

    meefymeef

    Open QuoteI agree sometimes it seems like butchery is a dying art. Don't forget online butchers, though. Fletchers of Auchtermuchty near us is a small deer farm offering humane artisan venison (using all the bits!) that does mail order. They do a bespoke cutting service mail order (and farmers markets and farm shop). It's farmers rather than butchers who will know how an animal has been treated during its life.

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  • Binder photo fairynuff27
    16 March 2011, 12:26PM

    fairynuff27

    Open QuoteI come from a family of pork farmers and meat is importnat to me. However, I work long hours and find my local butcher is rarely open at times I'm available. They close early on a Saturday, and open half days some week days too - which leave me little choice but to use the local supermarket. I had not considered online butchers, however - thanks to the previous commenter for that tip!

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  • Binder photo izzy2007
    16 March 2011, 9:32PM

    izzy2007

    Open Quotei would love to buy all my meat from the butchers the taste is so much better,but as a family of 5 i dont have time or the money to spend,

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  • Binder photo PaulieM
    16 March 2011, 9:34PM

    PaulieM

    Open QuoteI agree with MeefyMeef - We had a great local butcher who shut a couple of years ago, and all too often now we have found people claiming to know about the meat they are selling, with very little clue! I even resorted to the supermarkets for a time while I could find no alternative - and now I have taken the plunge with online butchers!There seem to be a good range to choose from, and at Christmas we tried Pipers Farm. Everything has been great so far,and more than anything they seem to have a great understanding of both what they sell and what i need!

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  • Binder photo Nicola
    17 March 2011, 1:37PM

    Nicola

    Open QuoteI get mine from a local farm who do home delivery (veg box, meat, dairy plus more). I know where the meat is coming from, it is all free range, it tastes far better than supermarket alternatives, I can have whatever weight I want, and amazingly it is actually at times cheaper than the supermarket! My friends still don't believe me, but it really is fantastic value for what you get. Also, I started using less meat per meal and bulking out with veg and pulses...it makes it easier to afford better quality meat!

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  • Binder photo retriever
    19 March 2011, 10:56AM

    retriever

    Open QuoteI am a great believer in using my local butcher but talking to some young mums and students recently they fear the butchers shop, as they are not sure what to ask for. In the supermarket everything is labelled and they just pick up what ever it tells them on the packet . Even if it is that cut or not, as some time they can be a little fanciful with the truth banking on peoples ignorance. Bring back good old fashioned Home Ec. in schools and lets educate our young people....

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  • Binder photo littleroy
    19 March 2011, 11:43AM

    littleroy

    Open QuoteIts the butchers every time for me. I would never eat supermarket meat again. I find that its tasteless and tough and compared to my local butchers there isn't much difference in price. I also don't agree with foods "packed in a protective atmosphere", which a very misleading piece of info on packaging.

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  • Binder photo Fandangio
    19 March 2011, 1:04PM

    Fandangio

    Open QuoteI guess this article may be preaching to the converted a little. The fact that people here are interested in making good meals means that they're inherently interested in taste. Meat from my local butchers is much more flavoursome than anything I've ever bought from a supermarket. So for that matter is veg from my local grocers!

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  • Binder photo Batisse
    19 March 2011, 5:56PM

    Batisse

    Open Quote I wouldn't buy meat or poultry unless I know where it came from. We have some excellent farm shops selling locally sourced meat and poultry.

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  • Binder photo kimkap
    20 March 2011, 1:48PM

    kimkap

    Open QuoteI've got to confess I do purchase meat from the local supermarket but only when I can't get to my butchers (which doesn't happen often) and you can tell the difference. Whenever my husband and I go away within the UK I always try and source a farm shop where I can stock up on different types of meat - I have never been disappointed. That said although I don't find the meat from the supermarket as tasty I haven't been disappointed with the quality of produce. Butchers or Supermarket - Butchers wins hands down

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  • Binder photo Katy
    24 March 2011, 1:31PM

    Katy

    Open QuoteI tend to buy from the supermarket, purely out of convenience and also because, as one other commenter said, I have no clue what to ask for. As I am trying to branch out and improve my cooking skills, however, I have been introduced to various cuts of meat, and now, unless it's for something that is just going into a curry or pasta sauce, I buy from a butcher.

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  • Binder photo Meaty123
    23 October 2011, 4:45PM

    Meaty123

    Open QuoteI don't like supermarket meat at all. I would much prefer to buy from My Local Butcher as you can have a wider choice of quality assured, fresh, local produce.

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  • Binder photo rapitkin
    23 October 2011, 8:37PM

    rapitkin

    Open QuoteI use http://www.traditional-beef.co.uk they use traditional beef breeds, grass fed and hang for 4-6 weeks. dont just take my word for it they also won gold at the 2011 great taste awards for their sirloin steaks

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  • Binder photo Meaty123
    15 November 2011, 7:55PM

    Meaty123

    Open QuoteFound this great new website! MyLocalButcher.co.uk You can order your meat online and it can be delivered from your own local butcher or you can get him to prepare it and "click and collect". Lots of butchers in the UK are in the process of registering with MyLocalbutcher.co.uk

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  • Binder photo fernster
    12 March, 6:13PM

    fernster

    Open QuoteSimple answer supermarkets and the lazy shopper! I still go to the butcher every week, excellent value CHEAPER than the supermarkets unless you only buy fat. You can also see the butcher apply his art. The taste is far better because a true butcher knows his craft and how to look after his meat. You cannot beat a piece of beef properly hung. In between my house and the butcher is Waitrose, Sainsburys, Asda and Tesco, neither of whom can beat price or quality. Give your Butcher a go you won't regret it.

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  • Binder photo schziophrenic cat
    12 March, 10:42PM

    schziophrenic cat

    Open QuoteThe idea that students will not go to the butchers or local market is wrong. Coming from a family of farmers and butchers the first thing I looked for when I went to uni was a good butchers, who happened to operate next to my local market. I have even convinced some of my uni friends to buy at the butchers, having shown them its cheaper and it makes it more possible to buy food for one. Supermarkets do tend to sell most of their stuff for 4 people and it means you can never just buy meat for a day. Although, living in the city where I live I am very lucky as there are still several butchers.

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  • Binder photo Rita
    13 March, 9:06AM

    Rita

    Open QuoteThere are one or two towns in England that have thriving butchers shops. One in particular has 4 within a 10 minute walk, and one of these has two of the shops, plus its' own abbatoir. The meat, and variety of cuts etc. is the best I've ever known. In the town there is also a Co-op (smallish) and a very large Tesco, but the butchers seem to have a very large share of the market. As people say a good butcher will explain various cuts, and advise on the best way to cook meat! Much better than pre-packed plastic tasting food!!\

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