A butcher from Newthorpe has been crowned ‘Young Butcher of the Year’ at this year’s Smithfield Awards, announced at Butchers’ Hall in London. Open to butchers aged under 24, Charlie Barlow of Barlow’s won the prestigious Q Guild of Butchers award, which is designed to recognise and reward the UK’s up-and-coming talent who represent the very future of the industry. Despite strong competition, judges were drawn to Charlie’s resilience under pressure, having met many business challenges head-on. Charlie also recently visited Texas to learn more about the craft of BBQ from pit masters in the US state.
Organised by the Q Guild of Butchers, the awards have run for more than 30 years and recognise and reward the UK’s finest craft butchery products, including sausages, bacon, burgers, steak, game products, and BBQ products, alongside crowning their Young Butcher of the Year.
Charlie Barlow said: “It’s a massive result to win this award. I’ve always wanted to win it so it means a lot. I think going out to Texas to see all the BBQ scenes for inspiration definitely helped me win and I’m really grateful.”
Gordon Wallace, Q Guild manager, added: “Our Q Guild Young Butcher of the Year award is arguably our most important. It highlights the skill, passion, and fresh thinking of young butchers, reinforcing confidence that the future of our craft is in capable hands. Charlie Barlow is an extremely worthy recipient and we would like to congratulate him on this fantastic achievement.”
Barlow’s was established in 1948 in the village of Newthorpe in Nottinghamshire.
