VLAM, the Flemish Centre for Agro- and Fisheries Marketing, recently brought together around 200 students and teachers from Flemish butchery training programmes in Ghent for Vleesch, an inspiration event focused on the future of the artisan butcher.
Through workshops and interactive activities, participants were introduced to the versatility of the profession and the opportunities it can offer young people.
The initiative comes at a time when the butcher profession has been listed among shortage occupations for at least 30 years.
With Vleesch, VLAM aims to encourage students to consider a future in artisanal butchery and, potentially, to open their own butcher shop.
“If the artisanal butcher disappears from the streetscape, we lose more than a shop,” says Filip Fontaine, CEO of VLAM. “By inspiring young people and showcasing the trade in all its facets, we are investing not only in a profession, but in the future of our local food economy.”
Young butchers as role models
Through workshops and interactive games, students were introduced to the many different aspects of the profession, from craftsmanship and product development to customer relations and entrepreneurship.
The goal was to give them a realistic and nuanced view of what working as an artisan butcher means today.
VLAM invited five young artisan butchers to lead the workshops, a deliberate choice intended to make the profession more relatable to students.
“We chose young butchers so that the students can relate to them better,” says Lieselotte Desimpelaere, Promotion Manager at VLAM.
“They are all artisan butchers with their own specialty and story, showing that as a young person you can go very far in this profession. If we want an artisan butcher to still be standing on our street in ten years, we must show young people today how fascinating this profession actually is.”
A profession with many roles
Choosing a career in butchery today means taking on far more than a single task.
A butcher is first and foremost a craftsman or craftswoman, with precision, product knowledge and food safety forming the foundation of the profession.
At the same time, creativity and customer focus are increasingly important in order to respond to changing consumer preferences.
For those running their own business, entrepreneurship is also a key part of the job. Decisions must be made every day regarding product range, pricing, presentation and the identity of the butcher shop.
The sector itself also supports the initiative and stresses the need to attract new talent.
“Our sector needs young talent that wants to continue the trade with pride,” says Ivan Claeys, chairman of the National Federation of Butchers.
“Events like Vleesch show students that a butcher shop today has at least as much to do with entrepreneurship and customer relations as with craftsmanship — and that is exactly the message we want to pass on to them.”
For the students who attended the event, the message is clear: the artisan butcher of tomorrow is what they make of it.
Through Vleesch, VLAM aims to motivate students to continue in the profession after completing their training, with running their own butcher shop as one possible next step.
