Profession butcher

Butchers or fishmongers in retail cut, trim or prepare consumer-sized portions of meat or fish for use or sale in retail establishments.

Personality Type

• Realistic / Conventional

Tasks butcher

• Order meat or fish supplies and maintain stocks.
• Receive, inspect and store meat or fish upon delivery, and arrange payment.
• Prepare standard or specially ordered cuts and products of meat or fish, e.g. cut, slice, trim, bone, shape, tie and grind meats (e.g. beef, pork, poultry), or scale, head, gut, wash and bone fish.
• Price and place meat or fish cuts and products in display counters.
• Sell meat or fish to customers, including wrapping, weighing and labeling products, and collecting payments.
• Advise customers, e.g. on storing, preparing and cooking meat or fish, or on estimating food portions.
• Clean tools and work surfaces.
• Undertake activities related to running a retail business, e.g. maintain financial and other records, arrange advertising, security, etc.
• Manufacture own meat or fish products, e.g. marinated meats, sausages, pies, ready-to-cook foods, etc.
• Supervise staff, e.g. other butchers, meat cutters, fishmongers or fish filleters.

Related professions shopkeeper

• Baker
• Confectionery maker
• Fishmonger
• Greengrocer, fruit trader
• Grocer
• Milkman
• Pharmacist, pharmacy manager
• Shop keeper/supervisor supermarket
• Shopkeeper agricultural retail, pets and flowers
• Shopkeeper clothing, textile, leatherwear
• Shopkeeper construction equipments or components
• Shopkeeper consumer electronics, household equipment
• Shopkeeper drugstore
• Shopkeeper food, beverages, tobacco products
• Shopkeeper jewellery, luxury goods
• Shopkeeper newspapers, books, music, videos, games
• Shopkeeper sporting equipments, leisure products
• Shopkeeper, all other

Knowledge

• Animal anatomy for food production

  The anatomy of animals, their organs and their functions, as well as the usage of these organs for food production after slaughtering.

• Warm blooded animal organs

  The difference between white and red organs of warm blooded animals and their position in the body. A white organ can be the stomach, red organs can be the heart, the liver, or the lungs. The norms to treat these organs properly.

• Food storage

  The proper conditions and methods to store food to keep it from spoiling, taking into account humidity, light, temperature and other environmental factors.

• Cultural practices regarding animal parts sorting

  The religious and cultural practices regarding animal parts sorting as to not mix meat parts with other parts that may inhibit religion practitioners from eating the meat.

• Legislation about animal origin products

  The applicable legal rules on temperature, waste materials, traceability, labelling, trading, and the transport of animal origin products. 

Skills

• Cope with blood

  Cope with blood, organs, and other internal parts without feeling distressed.

• Apply preservation treatments

  Apply common treatments to preserve the characteristics of food products taking care of their appearance, smell and taste.

• Provide first aid

  Administer cardiopulmonary resuscitation or first aid in order to provide help to a sick or injured person until they receive more complete medical treatment.

• Use a computer

  Utilise computer equipment or digital devices to facilitate quality control, data management, and communication. Follow instructions given by a computer programme, create computer files or documents.

• Apply HACCP

  Apply regulations regarding manufacture of food and food safety compliance. Employ food safety procedures based on Hazard Analysis Critical Control Points (HACCP).

• Prepare specialised meat products

  Prepare specialised meat products, minced meat, salt-cured meat, smoked meat, and other meat preparations such as pickled meat, sausages, crumbed meat, veal olive, and chipolata.

• Follow an environmental friendly policy while processing food

  Assure an environmental-friendly policy when working with natural resources like meat, fruits and vegetables. This means handling resources in the most efficient and nature-friendly way while trying to minimalise pressure on the ecosystem.

• Apply GMP

  Apply regulations regarding manufacture of food and food safety compliance. Employ food safety procedures based on Good Manufacturing Practices (GMP).

• Apply requirements concerning manufacturing of food and beverages

  Apply and follow national, international, and internal requirements quoted in standards, regulations and other specifications related with manufacturing of food and beverages.

• Trace meat products

  Take the regulations regarding the traceability of final products within the sector into account.

• Work in cold environments

  Work in cold storage and deep freeze facilities. Cooling rooms are around 0°C. Resist temperatures of -18°C in meat processing freezer facilities as required by law, except for the slaughterhouse, where room working temperatures are below 12°C by law.

• Monitor temperature in manufacturing process of food and beverages

  Monitor and control required temperatures in the different phases of production until the product reaches suitable properties according to specifications.

• Tolerate strong smells

  Tolerate strong smells expelled by the goods being processed during the production of goods.

• Process livestock organs

  Process livestock organs and other byproducts for meat manufacturing processes. Remove organs from carcasses and perform activities such as cutting or dividing parts, washing organs, execute specific treatments, packaging, and labelling.

• Mark differences in colours

  Identify differences between colours, such as shades of colour.

• Measure precise food processing operations

  Carry out accurately measured assignments with suitable tools and equipment in the process of producing food and beverages.

• Grind meat

  Use various types of machinery to grind animal parts into minced meat. Avoid the inclusion of bone splinters in the product. Maintain the meat grinding machine.

• Prepare meat for sale

  Prepare meat for sale or cooking which comprise the seasoning, larding, or marinating of the meat, but not the actual cooking.

• Split animal carcasses

  Separate animal carcasses and organs into larger subsections such as head and limbs, debone and cut them.

• Follow hygienic procedures during food processing

  Ensure a clean working space according to hygienic standards in the food processing industry.

• Tend meat processing production machines

  Operate production equipment and tools to process meat and meat products.

• Operate meat processing equipment

  Operate meat processing equipment for meat preparations and prepared meat products.

• Monitor stock level

  Evaluate how much stock is used and determine what should be ordered.

• Tend meat packaging machine

  Use machinery to package meat products under modified atmosphere, extending its shelf life.

• Consider economic criteria in decision making

  Develop proposals and take appropriate decisions taking into account economic criteria.

• Process customer orders

  Handle orders placed by customers. Receive the customer order and define a list of requirements, a working process, and a time frame. Execute the work as planned.

• Ensure refrigeration of food in the supply chain

  Apply different procedures to maintain the chain of temperature of foodstuffs and products in each stage of the production and supply chain.

• Work in a food processing team

  Collaborate in a team with other food processing professionals in service of the food and beverages industry.

• Handle knives for meat processing activities

  Handle knives for meat processing activities. Use the correct knives and cutting instruments for meat preparations, prepared meat products, or meat products made by a butcher.

• Ensure sanitation

  Keep workspaces and equipment free from dirt, infection, and disease by removing waste, trash and providing for appropriate cleaning.

• Maintain food specifications

  Preserve, review, and evaluate existing food specifications such as recipes.

Optional knowledge and skills

Source: Sisyphus ODB