Echoing a key theme of National Apprenticeships Week, the Institute of Meat (IoM) and Worshipful Company of Butchers (WCB) Prizegiving this year demonstrated how the meat industry is a welcoming place for all.
Over a hundred guests gathered at Butchers' Hall in London on Thursday 28th February to recognise the achievements of the winning apprentices, their employers and training providers.
The apprentice category winners each received a cheque for £250, a framed certificate and a years free membership of the Institute of Meat.
The most prized apprentice award, Champion Meat Apprentice, sponsored by Meat Management magazine, was won by Helena Akroyd of Craggies Farm Shop, Hebden Bridge, West Yorkshire. Helena received a winner’s trophy and certificate, a years free membership of the IoM - plus an additional cash prize of £500.
IoM chief executive Keith Fisher, together with Master of the Worshipful Co, Chris Wood, presented awards to the following category winners:
| AWARD | WINNER | EMPLOYER | SPONSOR | TRAINING PROVIDER |
| Best New Apprentice | Joshua Robinson | Morrisons | Windsor Food Machinery | Remit Training |
| Best Retailer Butchery Apprentice | Helena Akroyd | Craggies Farm Shop | National Craft Butchers | Leeds City College |
| Best Independent Retailer Meat Apprentice | Olivia Slack | Crich Butchers | Dalziel Ltd | MEAT Ipswich |
| Best In-Store Multiple Retailer Butchery Apprentice | Esther Sollis | Morrisons | IoM (Paul Edkins Memorial cup) | Remit Training |
| Best Meat Processing Apprentice | Ana Marques | Gressingham Foods | British Meat Processors Association | Workforce Training & Development |
| Best Abattoir Worker Apprentice | Michaela Robinson | Cranswick Country Foods | ABP Food Group | Workforce Training & Development |
| Best Apprentice Showing Management Potential in a Manufacturing Environment | Luke Hobson | Pilgrims UK | Worshipful Company of Poulters | Bishop Burton |
| Best Meat Apprentice Showing Real Management Potential | Niall Hutchinson | Millets Farm Shop | Oakfield Foods Ltd | MEAT Ipswich |
| Lord Graham Endeavour Award | Matt Axeford | Morrisons | IoM (Kenneth Jenkins cup) | Remit Training |
| Best Company Training Scheme | Kepak, Bodmin | IoM | Workforce Training & Development | |
| Best Meat Training Provider of the Year | Workforce Training & Development | WCB (Fred Mallion Bowl) |
A new generation of butchers making the craft their own
Women made up over fifty percent of the winning apprentices, with two-thirds of the total number over 25 years of age.
Commenting on the prizegiving, Keith Fisher said: "When we launched the awards over 30 years ago our intentions were to provide formal recognition of butchery skills and to keep the craft of butchery alive. I’m proud to say that I think we’ve played our part in achieving much more than that. Not only do we have a new generation of butchers respecting the traditional craft of butchery, but one that is making it their own. Butchery is now a hotbed of innovation, some of it driven by the very people who have been recognised over the years at our prizegiving.
"It’s also becoming ‘cool’ to be a butcher, whatever your age, gender or background. Butchers are increasingly being recognised as artisan craftspeople. Who’d have thought it?"
In addition to the apprentice awards, seven accomplished butchers were also granted their Institute of Meat Master Butcher accreditation (MB.Inst.M).
These butchers received their IoM Master Butcher certificates of accreditation from Bill Jermey, chairman of the IoM, who said: "I’m delighted to see these talented butchers join the prestigious ranks of Institute of Meat Master Butchers. Every year we receive a number of applications. Not all make it; the assessment process is by intention rigorous, so they have done very well indeed and are a credit to the industry. They demonstrate real mastery of the art, from field to fork."
IoM accredited Master Butchers 2024
| Simon Taylor (MB.Inst.M) | Surrey Hills Butchers |
| Jason Hilliard (MB.Inst.M) | ABP Beef |
| Nicholas Davies (MB.Inst.M) | ABP Beef |
| Joseph O’Sullivan (MB.inst.M) | Booker Group |
| Steven Russell (MB.Inst.M) | Booker Group |
| Jason Robinson (MB.Inst.M) | Booker Group |
| Philip Turpin (MB.Inst.M) | Asda |
The final award given on the day was to Danny Upson, retail butchery sales director, Dalziel Ltd, who was awarded a Fellowship of the Institute of Meat for services to the meat industry.
For more information about the prizegiving or how to nominate an apprentice, please contact Sheryl Horne at the Institute of Meat: info@instituteofmeat.org
This story was originally published on a previous version of the Meat Management website and so there may be some missing images and formatting issues.
