Dursley butcher lands top training award

A young butcher has won the Apprentice of the Month accolade from a top UK meat industry training provider.

Luke Carr, who works at Q Guild member Cam Family Butchers on Phillimore Road, won the award whilst undertaking his NVQ level three in Meat and Poultry Processing at the M.E.A.T butchery school in Ipswich.

Luke, now 22, started working in the shop when he was eight years old, helping his father and owner, Mark, with odd jobs. As he got older, he began learning more and cutting meat and decided on leaving school that butchery was the career for him.

Luke said: “I had always had an interest in this field and grew up surrounded by the industry – as well as working in the shop, I also spent a lot of time on my grandparents’ farm.

“When it came to deciding what I wanted to do there was no question about it. The choice was easy.”

By the time Luke achieved his NVQ level 2, he was involved in every stage of the business, and so decided to study for his level 3 exams, where he became Apprentice of the Month.

Luke is now ready to take over the shop from his father, Mark, who said: “Luke has a great skill and is a natural at coming up with new recipes and ideas, like our three-shire pork, apple and herb sausage that won its category in the Foodservice Sausage of the Year awards!

“Luke has an excellent relationship with all the staff and our customers adore him. He is the future in an ever declining industry and we are all very proud of him.”