A stylish young Australian butcher who goes by the moniker “Butcher Girl Alison” has spoken out about how she overcame prejudice and a sea of “white blokes” to succeed in her chosen field.
Alison Meagher, who was raised by a family of cattle farmers in rural Victoria and later became an expert in the global meat market after living in Shanghai and London, is happiest when she is holding a sharp knife and a slab of flesh.
She is currently on a mission to encourage other women to work as butchers in the community.
The 43-year-old woman discussed her difficulties breaking into the profession and overcoming all the times she was told there was no work for her in an interview with Daily Mail Australia.
She said, “I didn’t know anybody when I began who was female.”
“I had several rejections from butchers when I applied for apprenticeships as a woman.
“I have now made a name for myself as a woman in a highly male-dominated field. I understand how it feels to be really vulnerable, and I don’t want anybody else to experience it. I want to be there to support and mentor them.
She asserts that many people, however, still see butchering as an antiquated profession because of the stereotypes surrounding the profession’s appearance.
I believe that when people think of a butcher, they picture someone who resembles a sausage, but I have destroyed that stereotype, she said.
I don’t resemble a sausage, he said. I work as a chic butcher.
“I’m here to dispel preconceptions.” You may butcher your own path, and I really believe that if I persist, I can completely transform the sector.
“I believe it is an ancient profession that has been forgotten in this contemporary world, and we need to bring it back,” she said. “I am really thrilled that more women are coming in, and I hope I can be someone they look to and someone who can pioneer the way.”
While there is a severe scarcity of butchers, Alison noted that more women are entering the field and expressed her hope that soon, butcher women would be seen as the norm.
“When I first began, it was just me. I would get odd looks, so I had to work very hard to establish myself and show that I am not a joke,” Alison said.
Things are evolving, and there are many more women working in industries.
Women are really skilled at butchering; they have a great eye and are very gentle, and it is encouraging to see them working in many areas of the business, not just behind the counter.
“I think I am changing that perspective,” the author says, “and I would love if people one day saw (women in butchering) is just as frequent as a female doctor.”
According to the most current Australian Bureau of Statistics statistics, just 6% of those working in the sector are women.
However, the National Skills Commission anticipates that employment is in high demand and that during the five years from November 2021 to November 2026, the sector will expand by more than 11%, adding around 900 jobs.
Rebranding butchery, according to Alison, is the greatest way to fill those positions. She also advised the government to look outside at nations like France, where the sector is booming.
She said that “butchery is perceived as a job rather than an art and a talent” and that “trade organisations, together with the government, need to come in and perform a collaborative rebranding of the whole sector.”
“When you talk about France, they incorporate education and go field visits to farms and butcher shops.
In France, butchers are regarded as masters, and the skill of butchery is highly valued. Butchers go to schools to show off the facilities and discuss current concerns including extended remissions and sustainability.
To alter the idea that it isn’t only for individuals who don’t perform well in school or are born into the sector, that is what has to be done in Australia, according to the author.
She also believes that in order to appeal to a variety of demographics, Australian butchers need to cast a broader net.
We need to hire more women in the sector and individuals who aren’t simply Anglo-Saxon, so we need to be more welcoming and supportive of that, she added.
We must throw a much broader net in order to draw anyone other than white young men.
“We need to be attracting those individuals who like marinating, smoking their own meats, and making their own marinades, and luring them into this profession and demonstrating that it is a worthwhile industry,” the author says.
According to Alison, the meat business is in trouble as butchers lose their employment to supermarkets and prospective job seekers steer clear of the sector for a variety of reasons.
“There is a severe shortage in butchery, and I believe a significant portion of that is due to the butcher’s poor salary given the hours are almost always 12 hours per day, six days per week,” she added.
“State money and subsidies are excellent, but they can’t bring in enough customers.”
The loss and lack of interest in butchery may be attributed in large part to the many vocations that did not exist 10 or 20 years ago, as well as the fact that butchery has become somewhat obscured.
“Like other occupations, butchery pay must increase.” The pay for butchers is modest compared to that of other skilled workers like electricians.
The separation between the meat business and Australians, in her opinion, is a further factor contributing to the decrease of butchers.
“The whole generation has developed a disconnect when it comes to purchasing beef.” We often purchase it from the supermarket’s shelves, and many butcher shops are shutting since fewer people are using them, according to Alison.
It all feeds into itself because “when you don’t see butcher shops it isn’t seen to be a job.”
In addition, Alison said she wants butchers to educate the public about the best meat cuts and work toward zero waste.
As she put it, “People just grab for those wounds because they are more well-known. I want to dispel the myth that your main cuts are the only sensitive cuts.”
The Denver steak, a stunning steak with far more flavour than other principal cuts, is equally as soft as other key cuts of beef as does beef cheek.
Considering the current price of beef, it is more crucial than ever that we display these secondary cuts in the window. I detest waste and cannot believe these cuts are being thrown away.