Burnley butcher wins five gold medals in industry awards (From Lancashire Telegraph)

Burnley butcher wins five gold medals in industry awards

11:55am Friday 2nd November 2012 in News By Chris Adams

BURNLEY butcher Stephen Berkins hogged the limelight at a top industry awards ceremony.

The Rosegrove man was awarded five gold medals for his pork at the North West Awards for Excellence in Meat Products.

One of his dishes, a pork, whiskey and marmalade sausage, was given 99 out of 100 by judges at the event in Bolton’s Reebok Stadium on Wednesday.

Mr Berkins, 49, who has been a butcher for 34 years, said the competition, organised by the British Pig Executive, was the most hotly-contested in the industry.

His plain pork, and pork, leek and black pudding sausages also scooped gold medals, along with his sweet-cured bacon and traditional dry-cured bacon.

He said: “The judging is very severe and the standards get higher every year but I’m a perfectionist. I’m actually a little annoyed at losing the one mark for the pork, whiskey and marmalade sausage.

“They all have to be exactly the same length and colour – very uniform. But I’d been cooking since 5am so I suppose something had to give!”

His shop in Rosegrove Lane supplies meat to the New Waggoners Inn in Manchester Road and Booker Cash ‘n’ Carry in Gannow Lane.

He is now looking forward to preparing for British Sausage Week which begins on November 5.