The National Federation of Meat & Food Traders (NFMFT) has appointed independent retailer, John Mettrick, as its new president during its annual general meeting.

NFMFT president

Jim Sperring (L) hands over the NFMFT presidency to John Mettrick (R).

Mettrick is one of the UK’s leading independent retailers and is taking over from Jim Sperring, who served as president for two years.

Following the announcement, Mettrick pledged to ensure that independent retailers continue to be engaged at Government level, adding: “The federation will be engaged with the Department of Business Energy and Industrial Strategy and the Food Standards Agency to try and fashion regulation in such a way that craft butchers – farm shop and processors are not disadvantaged – but are valued and recognised for the part they play in the meat industry.”

The new president also appeared positive about the opportunities for members and butchers in general, despite economic uncertainty, and commented: “We are well placed to provide unique products and a unique service that supermarkets cannot offer.

“It’s about how we sell ourselves and the language we use when engaging with our customers.”

A full report on NFMFT’s AGM and conference will appear in the September issue of Meat Management magazine.

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.