A MEATY CHALLENGE is being laid in a Moray butcher’s shop who have two hopeful candidates in the search for the ‘UK’s Sexiest Butcher’.
A quest to find the nation’s sexiest butcher has been set by industry magazine The Meat Trades Journal, who are organising the campaign to coincide with National Butcher’s Week, which kicks off on Monday.
Jock Gibson, owner of Macbeth’s in Forres, is set to go head-to-head with his head butcher, Kevin Cargill – in the hope that one of them will garner enough votes to be considered Moray’s sexiest butcher.
Jock said: “It’s the first time we have done anything like this, but we just thought it would be a bit of fun. National Butchers’ Week is a great event to get involved in.
“The meat trade has had a challenging time over the years and we are having to come up with new and inventive ways to promote the business and the industry we are in, so we thought why not enter.
“National Butchers’ Week is a great opportunity for us to bang the drum for the local butcher and remind people that we are here to help. As well as the contest we will have offers on in store and online.
“We need to remind people that your local butcher has knowledge about meat that you won’t find anywhere else. We want to encourage people to tap into that knowledge so they get great cuts of meat at great prices.”
Kevin, who has worked at Macbeth’s for nine years, added: “It’s great to get on board with something like this. It’s important that people in the industry work together and support each other and campaigns like this really put us in the limelight. That said, I am not sure I will have a job left if I win the title and Jock does not.”
In January, Jock became an internet sensation when a video he made giving the public a unique insight into the intricacies of catching the elusive wild haggis went viral. The footage reached over 500,000 people in just a week.
But Kevin is no stranger to a bit of publicity and recently worked with Jock to create a Valentine’s Day sausage. Kevin ended up producing a white chocolate and chilli sausage which not only was a hit with the customers, but secured Macbeth’s more media coverage and attention on its social media sites.