How To Become A Butcher
What qualifications do I need?
If you have three years secondary school education, enjoy working with people, and would like to learn about processing and presenting meat, then a career as a butcher may well be right for you.
There are no entry requirements to becoming a butcher. Most butchers started out working as an apprentice in a butcher's shop or supermarket, learning as they go on the job.
Butchers are knowledgable in the safe handling of knives and equipment for the preparation of high quality, nutritious meat cuts for their customers. Butchers ensure that meat products are cut to company and customer specifications, and must also be able to use initiative and think on their feet.
How do I get started?
There are two ways to get started as a butcher:
You can become an apprentice butcher by signing a training agreement with your employer. This agreement specifies the skills you will be taught and qualifications you will get. Most of the training is undertaken on the job alongside experienced and qualified people. In addition, apprentices attend block training courses off-site to focus on essential knowledge and get their skills assessed.
The other option is to enrol in a pre-employment course. If you are unable to gain work within a butcher's shop or supermarket, then the pre-employment course will equip you with the basic skills. This may make it easier for you to obtain an apprenticeship later on. As the availability of these courses varies, you should contact the following training institutions nearest to you. These are:
Future career options
Many skills learnt as a butcher provide a solid grounding to advance your career into a number of different areas including; retailing; management; sales; marketing; the food service industry; processing sector; teaching/training and owning your own business. Click to view a chart indicating the career paths available to butchers.
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