Jobs in the red meat industry are incredibly varied and from starting as a production operative or a counter assistant, a career and further opportunities with an apprenticeship in butchery will not just give you the expertise to work with every cut of meat but will also allow you to develop your skills and earn while you learn.
“When I first started, I was 15 and starting my first job and I didn’t have a lot of confidence and was not good around people I didn’t know. Since starting my apprenticeship I have learned how to bone out and present products for sale and become more confident about speaking to and dealing with customers”.
Robbie Lawson, John Stewarts Butchers, Banff.
Jobs in the red meat industry are incredibly varied and from starting as a production operative or a counter assistant, a career and further opportunities with an apprenticeship in butchery will not just give you the expertise to work with every cut of meat but will also allow you to develop your skills and earn while you learn.
“When I first started, I was 15 and starting my first job and I didn’t have a lot of confidence and was not good around people I didn’t know. Since starting my apprenticeship I have learned how to bone out and present products for sale and become more confident about speaking to and dealing with customers”.
Robbie Lawson, John Stewarts Butchers, Banff.
A career in the red meat industry is hugely rewarding and the opportunity to undertake a Modern Apprenticeship in butchery allows you to benefit from training with industry experts and gain on the job experience whilst working towards a nationally recognised qualification. There’s a role available to suit everyone and qualifications to match, from processing and catering butchery to the retail butchers you see on high streets across the country.
Getting Started:
Starting out in butchery can take many forms from a job on a production line or behind a counter to going straight into an apprenticeship, giving you the opportunity to gain nationally recognised qualifications while you earn.
In both the processing, catering, and retail sector, from day one you’ll be hands on and skilling up from boning and trimming products such as beef, lamb, and pork, learning to use tools and producing a variety of products.
Working within the retail sector you’ll be creating eye-catching counter displays and learning to deliver a high-quality service to customers.
Progression:
Once you get a taste of the job and the potential to develop a successful career in butchery, further qualifications are available to help you further develop both personally and professionally.
There are always opportunities for you to further enhance your butchery skills with an eye towards more responsibility in the day to day running of operations both in retail as well as the processing and catering sectors.
Some of the skills you’ll be taught and covered in the additional courses include the labelling of products, sales operations, quality control and food safety.
Continued Development:
One thing is certain, you’ll never stop learning as a butcher.
Should you want to continue training there’s a prestigious Craft Butcher Diploma for those in the retail sector to put your skills to the test.
The diploma is internationally recognised and evidence that you’ve received the highest quality training and achieved the highest qualification in the Scottish retail meat industry.
For those in the processing and catering sector, there are further opportunities to learn more about the supply chain, distribution as well as management skills.
Find Out More About Getting Started
Take a look at the two videos below to find out more about a career and butchery apprenticeship from those that have been through the qualifications and gone onto successful careers within butchery and the red meat industry.
(Note: SVQ Qualifications have been updated since these clips were shot.)
