Over the Christmas and New Year break, I read a BBC article about changing meat buying habits and the decline of the high street butcher. You can read it here: Penistone butcher blames changing customer habits for closure.
It really struck a chord with me, but probably not for the reasons you might expect...
There’s no denying that it’s a tough time to be a retail butcher.
Costs across the board are rising: raw materials, overheads, staffing - you name it. Inevitably, some of that has to be passed on to the customer, and we know that puts people off. Here at G.J. Honour, we work extremely hard to absorb as much of that as we can, because once prices start creeping up it becomes a vicious cycle. But sometimes, despite best efforts, it’s unavoidable.
To give you just one example: beef prices have risen by around 30% in the last year alone. In the run-up to Christmas, we even saw prices jump by £1.50 per kg overnight on a single day. Margins are being squeezed from every angle.
There are a lot of reasons for this...
Farms are closing due to an ageing farming population, inheritance tax pressures, and the simple fact that farming has become less profitable. Brexit has added further strain, pushing farmers to export rather than sell domestically. All of this feeds directly into the prices we see at the counter.
Where I don’t entirely agree with the article is in placing the blame squarely on supermarkets.
Yes, of course we’ve lost customers to supermarkets - that would be foolish to deny. But it's all too easy to point the finger without looking inward.
It’s also worth remembering that supermarkets are under pressure too. There’s a reason you don’t see many staffed meat counters or delis anymore: They’re expensive to run. It’s far cheaper to stack pre-packed meat in chilled cabinets and remove the human element altogether.
And that’s where we differ.
Independent butchers, especially those selling high-welfare meat, offer a fundamentally different product and a completely different service.
The audience for retail butchers is still very much there. It’s just up to us to appeal to them properly and explain what we do, why we do it, and why it matters.
We offer advice. We offer skills. And most importantly, we build relationships. Supermarkets simply can’t do that.
Butchers also need to move with the times and acknowledge that buying habits have changed.
Despite what the article suggests, plenty of people are still cooking a Sunday roast, but the cuts they choose are different. We’re seeing customers opt for topside instead of rib of beef, or rediscovering cuts like pork belly that would once have been overlooked.
A huge part of our day-to-day conversations in the shop now revolves around helping customers find cuts that work for their budget and showing them how to make their meat stretch further.
This is where we can really come into our own.
Our customers trust us. They know we’re not here to push the most expensive joint every time. We work with individuals - their tastes, their family, their budget - and help them find the best option for them.
That’s something I believe independent butchers should be leaning into, not shying away from.
For me, this moment represents an opportunity.
An opportunity for butchers to shine, to reassert our place on the high street, and to remind people that we’re more than just a place to buy meat. We’re a hub of knowledge, advice and community. And that’s something worth protecting.
Yes, times are tough. But if we continue to offer excellent products, honest advice and proper service - and make sure we communicate that clearly - then independent retail butchers absolutely still have a future.
And I, for one, am very much in it for the long haul.