Kiwi butchers win Tri-Nations tournament
Teams from Great Britain, Australia and New Zealand battled against each other for the chance to be named champions, with the finals taking place at the Great Yorkshire Show in Harrogate, England, last week.
Each country had to butcher a side of beef and a full lamb carcase into a range of cuts and products in a two-hour time frame, to be judged by a panel of experts.
Three independent judges – one from each country – scored the teams on butchery skill, workmanship, product innovation, overall finish, presentation and display.
The Pure South Sharp Blacks from New Zealand were revealed as winners for the second year in a row.
Corey Winder, team captain, said: "The feeling’s awesome, it’s hard to describe, it’s just awesome. We were giving it our best for victory, a lot of time and thought has gone into winning this today. We’ve all travelled a long way, so we’re on the tired side, but we knew we had a job to do, we knew what we needed to do and we just got on and did it and it paid off.
"This competition, for our industry, is absolutely fantastic. It shows young guys that there is a career path to the industry, they can achieve great things. An opportunity to represent your country and become champions – anything like that has to be brilliant for the industry."
The competition was held following a 10-day study tour by the Australian and New Zealand teams, who visited UK retail businesses and farms, as well as sharing best-practice advice.
The winning team was announced at the SuperMeat & Fish Awards – an annual awards ceremony in London, UK, hosted this year by celebrity presenter and musician Myleene Klass.
