A young butcher from Upper Eden was impressed by the high regard in which his trade is held by people in Scandinavia during a trip to Denmark.
Iain Sanderson, 19, of Soulby, works for Kirkby Stephen butcher Colin Steadman and was one of a group of just seven apprentices from the UK attending a 12-day gourmet butchery course at a state-of-the- art facility called ZBC Roskilde, west of Copenhagen.
The invitation to the internationally renowned butchery college was issued by national food industry training provider MEAT Ipswich, which originally asked 200 apprentices to apply for the course.
Butchery trainer Kevin Jaggard said: “Iain was chosen after writing a 250-word statement which showed evidence of his passion for the meat trade and commitment to his apprenticeship in both theory and practical areas. It also showed his willingness to learn new and alternative Danish butchery methods and how he thinks these could be advantageous to him and his employer to take the business forward.”
During the trip, the British apprentices joined a class of Danish students, with the whole group being set two tasks for the coming days — to make an international sausage and design a sandwich.
Other activities they enjoyed during their intensive course ranged from cutting pork to retail specification, making sausages and splitting a pork leg for curing to visiting a butcher’s shop in Roskilde and cooking three meat-based meals — all topped off with a final exam.
On a more relaxed note, the group also enjoyed a trip to Copenhagen to experience the sights and sounds of the Danish capital and a tour of the Viking Longboat Museum.
Iain said: “The course was incredible — they put a lot of care into everything at the college and I learned some completely different things to what I’d done before. It was also good to chat with other people at the college, including some from Eastern Europe.
“Over there in Scandinavia butchery is held in very high regard, unlike in the UK — I could be interested in going back there in the future.”
He was also impressed by how clean everything was in Denmark, the politeness of Danish people and how well everybody he met spoke English.
Following his return to Cumbria, Iain was also delighted to learn he had gained his butchery level two qualification following 17 months of study in the Kirkby Stephen shop and online.
“I was very pleased,” he said. “I found it OK because it was something I really wanted to do and Colin had already taught me a lot. I’m fully trained now, but can go on to do advanced butchery and then study to be a master butcher.”
