Butchery Apprenticeship Programme

Join our Butchery Apprenticeship Programme and learn from the best in the business!

Requirements

• Attention to detail
• Team working
• Physical fitness
• No formal qualifications required; support will be provided towards completing Level 1 Functional Skills.
• Enthusiasm for the industry and a commitment to completing your apprenticeship.
• Keen to develop your skills and grow within the company.

Responsibilities

• Learn foundational knowledge in butchery principles, meat species, and carcass processing techniques.
• Develop knife skills for cutting, boning, trimming, and mincing meat.
• Understand the meat sector's history, values, culture, and traditions.
• Work with the team to meet deadlines and productivity targets.
• Adhere to health, food safety, and hygiene standards.
• Assist in stock control, quality assurance, and customer expectations.
• Comply with regulations and legislation relevant to their role and business.
• Maintain and sharpen knives and cutting equipment.
• Manual handling of carcases or primals through the manufacturing or butchery process.
• Adhere to organisational policies and standard operating procedures.
• Maintain meat product to customer specification and ensure food safety compliance and traceability procedures in the meat supply chain.
• Support colleagues in delivering daily workplace requirements.
• Use technology and applications to support production, sales, and customer service.
• Contribute to continuous improvement activities focusing on improving sustainability within the business.
• Communicate with customers and stakeholders to meet their requirements.
• Process and dispose of waste material.
• Use knives and cutting equipment to undertake a range of primary and secondary butchery skills.
• Serve customers in line with brand standards.
• Advise customers on the use by dates, storage, preparation, and cooking of meat products.
• Prepare, produce, and display meat products (e.g., joints, portions, sausages, burgers, value-added products) and offer alternative products when required.
• Plan and prepare for seasonal supply and demand of meat products in the merchandising and promotion of seasonal foods.
• Provide provenance and heritage product information.
• Set up and close meat counter displays.
• Balance customer needs with additional linked products and services (e.g., marinades) and encourage customer loyalty and repeat business.
• Produce meat to specific volume, size, and weight to meet stakeholder needs.
• Maximise saleable yield for the business relating to carcases or primals.
• Contribute to efficiencies to support key performance indicators (KPIs) of the business by working to agreed specifications for their role.
• Adhere to customer specifications and contracts.
• Contribute to foreign body control and metal detection.
• Meet key performance indicators within meat processing.