It’s the beginning of National Butchers Week, which celebrates the craft and excellence of the trade! Here at Edwards of Conwy, we pride ourselves on practising traditional butchery methods with care and attention. Butchery is an ancient art that has a much deeper history than is often discussed.

How Butchery Began

Archaeologists recently discovered the remains of butchered animal bones in Kenya, which they were able to date back as far as 2.9 million years ago. These are the earliest dated bones to suggest the practise of butchery. It is believed that sharpened stones were used to cut the bones and chop the meat.

As humans evolved and developed over the centuries, the practice became much more sophisticated. The Romans were the first to introduce specialist butchers’ shops, which they called Marcella’s, to provide the citizens of their empire with fresh meat.

Butchery became more of a recognised trade in the Middle Ages, when butcher guilds were formed to regulate the quality and costs of meat production. The importance of cleanliness standards also became a crucial factor in this era, as people became more aware of how the care of fresh produce prevented the risk of disease outbreaks.

In the Victorian era, the increase of urbanisation saw people become much more dependent on butchers’ shops for produce, particularly in the New Towns. In the rural areas, it became more common for people to rear livestock for slaughter to support the demand. Cheaper cuts were popular amongst the poorer classes, as they could be cured in salt or used for stews. While some of the roasting joints we see today were more popular within the higher classes.

Butchery in Modern Day

Modern butchery has also seen a significant amount of change in a short space of time. The First and Second World Wars changed how butchers’ shops operated due to rationing and shifts in demand. While the post-war era saw an increase in demand for more speciality products, such as pies and sausages, which are still produced in butchers’ shops across the country today.

Today, we are seeing a resurgence in interest in butchery.  The interest in sustainable food systems and a hunger for knowledge to know where their food is being sourced from is creating a new enthusiasm for local butchers among consumers across the country.

About Edwards of Conwy

Edwards of Conwy has been providing their butchery expertise to the High Street in Conwy for over 40 years, with our customers at the heart of everything we do.

Our team of Master Butchers have over 150 years of expertise between them and has been a large part of Edwards of Conwy’s story for many years, with most of them working with Ieuan since the beginning of our shop.

As we enter our next chapter, the team are beginning to pass on their skills and expertise to our 3 trainee butchers, including Ieuan’s son, Sion. Our master butchers pride themselves on the preservation of traditional methods and practises that make local butchery so unique.