It was a big ol’ trip back — about 28 hours travel from Sacremento to Los Angeles to Auckland to Dunedin.
Q. For your competition, 10 butchers got 150 minutes to break down and add value to half a lamb, a loin of pork with the belly attached, a rump of beef and two chickens. How did that go?
It was a challenge. I was expecting everything to be bigger, although the pork was a whole other level compared to what we get in New Zealand. It had three inches of fat over the back of the pork and the loin weighed about 25kg — it was huge.
Q. Where did you place?
I didn’t get a placing but I’m not sure of my exact result — I’m still waiting on feedback and scorecards from judges. Some of the countries had really elaborate displays, they had backdrops and props. I took a minimal amount of gear with me. I was happy with how I went and the products I produced but if I could do it again, I’d like to make more of a display out of it. I think they were marked well on their overall display — some of them had Eiffel Towers and lights on their table, just incredible displays they’ve shipped over and set up, where I just had plates, my products and garnish.
Q. A model of the Eiffel Tower doesn’t make the meat taste any better?
No, but there must have been a lot of points for display. I’ve always believed you get judged on the meat you display and the skill it takes to do it, but I was happy with how I went. It was an awesome experience.
Q. Are you looking forward to returning to work at New World Gardens in North Dunedin?
Yeah, it’ll be good to get into a routine — it was quite stressful leading up to the competition — but now that’s done, I can get back to focusing on work and life and family and friends, but I definitely want to carry on with these type of competitions and see how far I can go.
- The national team the Sharp Blacks placed third at the World Butchers’ Challenge.
The team competed against 12 other countries in a three-and-a-half-hour showdown at the Golden 1 Centre in Sacramento.
Each team had to turn a side of beef, a side of pork, a whole lamb and five chickens into a themed display of value-added cuts.
Sharp Blacks team captain Riki Kerekere said placing third was a massive achievement.
"I am really proud of how well the team performed on the day."
Germany won the competition and Australia claimed second place.
