Emily Jackson, an apprentice butcher at Tebay Services, has been named Best Apprentice Butcher in Great Britain at the Institute of Meat at the Worshipful Company of Butchers annual prize-giving, held at the Butchers’ Hall in London.
Emily competed for the title against apprentices from around the country and was presented with her certificate of achievement by Andrew Parker, master of the Worshipful Company of Butchers.
Emily was also awarded a cheque to the value of £250 and a year’s honorary membership of the Institute of Meat.
The head of butchery at Westmorland Family, David Morland, said: “Emily is a great credit to our butchery and she’s a highly skilled apprentice and valued member of the team. She should be very proud of her achievements and this award is a recognition of her hard work and determination.”
Attracting, training and retaining younger skilled staff remains a key issue for the butchery industry.
The Tebay Services’ butchery apprenticeship scheme began in 2008, when the services introduced a traditional butchery facility to the farm shop on their southbound site.
Over the last decade, Tebay has trained 10 fully qualified butchers in their training scheme. Emily is Tebay’s 11th apprentice and the first female apprentice butcher, with a second woman apprentice joining the butchery team last year.
“We’re very proud of our team at Tebay. We believe in doing things properly and practice nose to tail butchery, utilising the whole carcass, ensuring nothing is wasted,” said David.
“Our thriving butcher’s shop makes over a tonne of home-made sausages every week.
“We now have a team of 17 people working in our busy butchery, preparing and selling great top quality, local meat on the motorway.
“Our apprentice scheme aims to pass on skills that are disappearing from modern butchery practice. We want to train them properly — and they in turn will pass on their skills to the next generation.”
