Irish butchers need our support all year - not just during the festive season

Butchery isn’t just a profession – it is a finely-honed craft. Besides working literal magic with any cut of meat, your local butcher can offer personalised service; accessing less-common meats or providing bones for broths and sauces.

According to global industry insights company IBIS World, the Irish butchery industry mostly comprises small, independent or family-run businesses. In the past five years, butcher revenue fell by a rate of 1.4%, but thankfully the outlook for the industry isn’t entirely bleak.

For example, this past May saw inflation rates drop to a more manageable 2.6%. This was good news as consumers became more willing to “splurge” on premium meats, leading to higher sales on products like organic beef and free-range poultry. An increasing number of butchers are also moving into online sales and nationwide delivery; offering a wider geographical reach and expanding their customer base.

The main competition for independent Irish butchers remains, unsurprisingly, supermarkets, who routinely outprice butcher shop offerings and provide the element of ‘one-stop-shop’ convenience. When it comes to quality and service, however, our local butchers are still the go-to. You might pay a bit more, but you are paying for transparent sourcing and a higher level of expertise.

The lead-up to Christmas is the busiest time of year for Irish butchers; a time where consumers take sourcing their roast dinners very seriously.

The real challenge for Irish butchers is to maintain this higher level of footfall throughout the year and not just during the festive season.

Irish Butchers’ Guild

Jason Corrigan is a third-generation butcher who operates Corrigan’s Butchers in two Dublin locations. He is also president of the Irish Butchers’ Guild, which represents roughly 50 independent butchers all over the island of Ireland.

The guild was formed as a way to amplify the voices of independent butchers, but also as a way to network and learn from each other.

“We have a very proactive WhatsApp group,” Jason says. “If a member has a question, there’s always someone there with an answer and support. We take guild trips to other shops to see how things are done differently. It has really lifted the industry as a whole – independent butchers are not in competition with each other, at the end of the day.”

Despite the positivity within the group and their combined successes (guild members won several Good Food Ireland and Blas na h’Éireann awards in 2024), Jason says there is no denying the industry’s decline in recent decades.

“I’ve been butchering since 12 years of age – at that time, there was a shop on every corner,” he says.

For Christmas 2024, the guild is asking consumers to pay close attention to their beef and lamb purchases to ensure they are supporting local. In a statement to Irish Country Living, they say buying from their local butcher preserves “a way of life that is under serious threat”.

“This Christmas, as we prepare to gather with loved ones, the importance of supporting local businesses cannot be overstated,” they say.

“In the 1990s, Ireland boasted 2,300 independent butchers and over 800 abattoirs. Today, those figures have plummeted to 700 butchers and fewer than 150 abattoirs. Without these local hubs, the direct route for locally reared beef and lamb to reach our plates will vanish.

Ireland is a big consumer of meat and the small butcher finds it hard to compete with that

“Independent butchers don’t just sell meat; they champion Irish food culture. Many rear their own animals, make traditional sausages and puddings and cure their own bacon. They work with local farmers and abattoirs, keeping food miles low and ensuring sustainable practices. Choosing local this Christmas supports small-scale farming, prioritises animal welfare, and sustains rural economies.”

Jason says in years past, supermarkets would use alcohol sales as a loss leader to get people through the door. When they were no longer able to do that, they started using meat as the loss leader.

“Ireland is a big consumer of meat and the small butcher finds it hard to compete with that,” he adds.

Encouraging younger generations to take up the craft is also proving difficult, as butchers often work unsociable hours and up to six days per week. Add in the increased costs of operation seen in recent years and you can see why some shops have decided to make the difficult decision to close.

There are obvious challenges for independent butcher shops, but opportunities, too. According to the 2024 Bord Bia Foodservice Report, Irish consumers are not eating out as often as before, but are still willing to invest in meals they feel are worth the price tag. It’s all about providing a great customer experience and high-quality products – things Irish butchers already offer.

Family business

Barry Fitzgerald understands this and has made significant changes to his butchery business in Fermoy, Co Cork. While he took a risk in making these changes, he says he has been reaping the benefits ever since.

“We’ve been based in Fermoy since 1964,” he explains. “My father and uncle started the business, and three years ago I went out on my own and moved into a bigger premises. It’s just going from strength to strength.”

Besides running the shop, Barry and his family rear beef and sheep and own a fully licensed abattoir. This means that over 98% of the beef and lamb sold in his shop is either from his own farm or comes from a local farmer. His pork is also locally sourced from nearby Mitchelstown.

“I did a revamp in our shop back in 2017 and it gave us a great lift – and a badly-needed one because, to be honest, we were dying a death,” he says. “Most people won’t put money into their business when it isn’t doing so well, so this was a leap of faith, and it paid off.

“The new premises was another leap of faith, but as I’d done it once before I wasn’t as afraid.”

Three years ago I went out on my own and moved into a bigger premises. It’s just going from strength to strength

When Barry moved into his new shop, he made an additional investment which he feels has made a huge difference in footfall: a Himalayan salt dry-ageing room. The room faces the street, enabling passersby to see exactly what the process of dry ageing meat looks like.

“A lot of butchers dry age their meats, but it’s not on display – it’s hidden away like a secret,” Barry remarks. “We don’t advertise this enough. Supermarket meat is all wet-aged [see section below for definition]. Before, we’d have been ageing our meat for 2-3 weeks. Now, we age in the salt room for 21-40 days and there is a marked difference in the flavour profile of the meat.”

The salt room hasn’t just increased footfall – it has also given Barry opportunities to experiment with new products. His dry-aged guanciale, which recently won the Chef’s Choice award at the 2024 Blas na h’Éireann ceremony, started out as an experiment but has now opened new pathways for him – customers are travelling from further afield for the cured pork delicacy.

“I started making it last year,” Barry explains. “I got a few [local pork] jowls, cured them and hung them in the salt room for several months. I had them hanging in there for about four months last year and they were lovely. We started vacuum-packing them and they started selling really well.”

Ultimately, Barry feels that while Irish consumers need to increase their support for local butchers, the industry also needs to be okay with modernising. This doesn’t mean moving away from valued traditions, but better understanding today’s consumer to ensure the survival of the industry. “I suppose it’s about knowing your competition and knowing your customers, as well – there might be a trade-off, but you have to do something a little bit different.”

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