A CUT ABOVE – BRITAIN’S TOP BUTCHERS CROWNED AT ANNUAL SMITHFIELD AWARDS
Platinum Award presented to overall winner Lidgate’s
Ten exceptional butchers from across the UK have been crowned best in class at this year’s Smithfield Awards.
Announced at Butchers’ Hall in London, winning butchers hailed from towns and cities across the UK from Aberdeen and Newcastle to Leamington Spa and London.
Organised by the Q Guild of Butchers, the prestigious awards which have run for more than 30 years, recognise and reward the UK’s finest craft butchery products. In what is widely acknowledged as the meat trade’s most high profile and challenging evaluation, products from UK butchers including steak, sausages, burgers, bacon, BBQ products and more went head-to-head to be named best in class and secure a coveted Diamond Award.
Products submitted for this year’s awards were assessed by an esteemed panel of 20 respected industry professionals, journalists and foodies at the City of Glasgow College earlier this year.
The best products were awarded Bronze, Silver or Gold, with gold products in each category then pitched against each for the category champion Diamond Award.
The Smithfield Platinum Award was judged on the morning of the awards from a shortlist of the Diamond Award winning products. The winner and crowned overall ‘best of the best’ was Lidgate’s in Holland Park for their Roast 45-Day Aged Beef.
Charlie Barlow from Barlows Butchers in Nottingham was crowned Q Guild Young Butcher of the Year – a category open to all aged under 24 and designed to recognise and reward the UK’s up and coming talent who represent the very future of the industry.
Gordon Wallace, Q Guild Manager said: “The Smithfield Awards are designed to celebrate excellence in UK craft butchery, driving higher standards and inspiring innovation across the industry. As the meat trade’s most rigorous product evaluation, achieving a Diamond award is a remarkable achievement and a real testament to the quality of the products crafted by UK butchers.
“We would also like to extend our congratulations to Charlie Barlow recipient of the Q Guild Young Butcher Award – arguably our most significant accolade. This award highlights the skill, passion, and fresh thinking of young butchers, reinforcing confidence that the future of our craft is in capable hands.”
Overall Winner – Smithfield Platinum Award presented by the Master of the Worshipful Company of Butchers
Roast 45-Day Aged Beef – Lidgate’s, Holland Park, London.
Full list of Diamond Award Winners:
Traditional Pork Sausage sponsored by Lucas Ingredients
Farmhouse Pork Sausage – John Davidsons, Inverurie, Aberdeenshire
Innovative Sausage sponsored by Innovative Food Ingredients
Moroccan Lamb Sausage – Chase Farm, Sutton Coldfield
Ready Meal sponsored by Verstegen
Butter Chicken – Aubrey Allen, Leamington Spa
Burger sponsored by Dalziel
Signature Steak Burger – Coates, Coxhoe, Durham
Hot Eating Pie sponsored by Scobie & Junor
Mince & Onion Pie – The Blagdon Farm Shop, Blagdon, Newcastle upon Tyne
Cold Eating Pie sponsored by Scobie & Junor
Pork & Apple Pie – Cranston’s, Penrith
Cooked Meats sponsored by Kelsius
Roast 45-Day Aged Beef – Lidgate’s, Holland Park, London
BBQ Product sponsored by Dalziel
Chicken Thigh Kebab – Trussell’s, Knebworth, Hertfordshire
Speciality Game Meat Product sponsored by Eat Game
Game & Red Wine Pie – Lishman’s of Ilkley, Ilkley, Yorkshire
Best Butchers Steak sponsored by South Coast Systems
Ribeye Steak – Owen Taylor, Leabrooks, Derbyshire
Home Cured Bacon sponsored by Dalesman
Home Cured Bacon – Lishman’s of Ilkley, Ilkley, Yorkshire
Best Butchers Display sponsored by Dalesman
Aubrey Allen, Leamington Spa
Q Guild Young Butcher of the Year sponsored by The Institute of Meat
Charlie Barlow, Barlows, Nottingham