YOUNG BUTCHERS COMPETITION


CRAFTBUTCHER l MARCH 2017 13 IT ALL SEEMED TO MAKE SENSE!


difficult category in Leeds. Tis year the Judges at


Pictured (leſt to right) Viv, James T, James H, Dylan & John van de Sandes


PREVIOUS training in Leeds seemed to have leſt things somewhat hanging with ideas not very fluid and innovation lacking, things didn’t quite click! Landing in Schiphol,


Amsterdam's international hub airport on Sunday lunchtime, everyone was hoping for better things. For James Henshaw, who until now hadn't been out of the country let alone up in an aeroplane the experience was new, but for all three, James H, Dylan Gillespie and James Taylor, it was the beginning of something never experienced by any of them before. We oſten relate innovation,


precision and flair to Dutch football and art. But for those in the know, the same qualities are as synonymous with Dutch butchery as they are to football and art. And it’s no accident that this is so! In a country, half the


size but with three times the population of Scotland, for generations the Dutch government, industry and individual businesses have tripartite funded apprenticeships and their future. To the extent that today the SVO training organisation has a network of sixteen centres of excellence and specialist training schools across the country delivering 3 - 5 year training plans for thousands of butchery apprentices.


Te SVO School in Best


near Eindhoven is one such school where Principal trainer John van de Sandes has been involved with the International Young Butcher Competition (IYBC) for many years, having competed in the competition himself in 1986, and now heavily involved training the Dutch team.


the competition in Austria in May will expect Barbecue products to be practical as well as innovative. It has been a regular criticism in recent years that too many products produced in the competition lack practicality and just won’t stand up to cooking as much as they stand up to scrutiny for innovation, precision and decorative appearance. Being kept up to speed with


photos of products produced at and since training in Leeds, John with UK Team Coach Viv Harvey critiqued the BBQ


cutters to get dimensions and proportions right. And rather than introducing new solutions the theme was very much to improve existing ones.


Too large or much too small Following lunch provided


by SVO Best restaurant chef and ‘maître d’, Franz. It was time to look at Kitchen Ready ‘Main Roast and Mini Roasts’. With Kitchen Ready,


First principles Tere isn’t a lot that John


doesn't know about the IYBC and what’s necessary to succeed at this level. And thanks to extra funding from the Worshipful Company of Butchers, like Lucy and Joe last year Dylan, James H and James T were to benefit over the next three days from Dutch ‘know how’ in Barbecue, Kitchen Ready and Main Course categories of the competition. Monday morning, following


introductions it was down to first principles and Dylan, JH and JT got to work with Barbecue which regular readers of Craſt Butcher will remember being a particularly


items the three had produced. Next, came advice as to


how to make products better for a competition that heavily accents on precision and innovation by using simple tools like rulers and pastry


competitors get a Topside Cap (Gracillas) muscle and a Bullit (centre) muscle from the Tick Flank ‘Knuckle’ of beef. In previous years competitors had a choice between these as well as the Flat, Shin and Corner (Rump Cap or Aitchbone cutlet) muscles. Together with an assortment of specified vegetables, herbs and spices. But again, in 2017 there’s a


tightening up, this time with quantities and economic use of materials where contestants must be mindful of waste and avoid ordering excessive amounts of ingredients. From photos and since


training in Leeds, D J & J seemed better placed with this than the Barbecue category. But if complacency had ‘kicked’ in, all three were soon ‘knocked’ back with critique from John and Viv, that layers were not precise enough, too thick or too thin and that ‘mini roasts’ were too large or in the case of Dylan much too small! Aſter scrubbing down, it


Making products better


was off to Best town centre, a scout round the local


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