Sixteen of the best butchers from across the globe descended on Sacramento last week to size up the competition for the much-anticipated World Butchers’ Challenge, to be held in September 2020.

Team captains in front of Golden 1 Center

Team captains in front of Golden 1 Centre, including Team GB captain, Simon Hill, far left.

The team captains, each representing one of the 16 nations competing in the World Butchers’ Challenge, came together for the inaugural Captain’s Run, which also gave them the opportunity to experience the Californian capital and the Golden 1 Centre - the designated battleground next year. Team GB's captain this year is Simon Taylor of Surrey Hills Butchers.

Whilst in town, the World Butchers’ Challenge took over the renowned Farm-to-Fork festival stage to introduce the captains and unveil the Friedr. Dick Golden Knife Trophy, the accolade the teams of six will be competing for in an intense three-hour showdown which will see them transform a side of beef, a side of pork, a whole lamb and five chickens into a themed display of value-added cuts.

The city is thrilled to host the World Butchers’ Challenge next September and Visit Sacramento CEO, Mike Testa says the competition will build upon the ethos they’ve worked hard to cement.

“This event is one of a kind. It’s the biggest meat event in the universe and the largest global food event that’s ever been held at the Golden 1 Centre.

“This competition brings together two of Sacramento’s passions - sport and food. We’ll essentially have 96 elite athletes, at the top of their game, showcasing innovation and skill with our local produce.”

Equally, the World Butchers’ Challenge is proud to be heading back to Sacramento next year after the visit this week.

“Sacramento is a truly unique city and given their passion for producing sustainable, quality food, I can’t think of a better home for the competition come 2020,” says World Butchers’ Challenge Chairman, Rod Slater.

“Having seen the emotion on the captain’s faces as they walked into the Golden 1 Center for the first time, there is no doubt in my mind this event is going to cause waves in the global meat and food industry. Mark my words, the 2020 World Butchers’ Challenge will go down in history.”

The World Butchers’ Challenge will take place on 4th & 5th September 2020 at the Golden 1 Centre, Sacramento. For more information head to worldbutcherschallenge.com

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.