Crawshawbooth butcher has a lot at ‘steak’ (From Lancashire Telegraph)

Crawshawbooth butcher has a lot at ‘steak’

4:01pm Thursday 21st March 2013 in News By Chris Adams

AN APPRENTICE butcher is jetting off to Germany to prove he is a cut above the rest.

Ryan Healy, from Crawshawbooth, will spend three days in Frankfurt vying for the title of International Young Butcher of the Year.

He is one of just three entrants from England selected by industry experts to represent ‘Team GB’ against representatives from 10 other nations.

Mr Healy works at Riley’s, in Burnley Road, Crawshawbooth, where he has honed his skills with husband-and-wife owners Geoff and Paula Riley. The former Alder Grange Community, Technology School and Sixth Form pupil is aiming to put the Valley on the world map.

He said: “I couldn’t ask to be working for a better person than Geoff and it’s an honour to be nominated for this award. I am proud to be representing Riley’s, Rossendale, and England.”

Mr Riley said the 19-year-old had started out as a dish-washer during his final year of school, before expressing an interest in butchery.

He said: “Ryan has been with us for three-and-a-half years and has been a quick learner and is con-scientious.

“The Dutch and French are the world leaders in this industry, but we are proud of Ryan for being chosen.”

Mr Healy was nominated by Chris Moorby, course director at Leeds City College’s Thomas Danby campus, where he studied.

Mr Moorby said: “Ryan spent two years with us studying butchery and we nominated him because he has excellent practical skills. The UK only start-ed entering this event in the last five years or so, and we have improved year on year. It will be rigorous and competitive, but Ryan is a strong comp-etitor and we are really proud of him.”

Officials from the Meat Traders’ Association visit-ed Riley’s to assess Mr Healy. He will have to dem-onstrate skills, including boning through to pie-making and meat prepar-ation, to judges from the International Butcher Con-federation and National Federation of Meat and Food Traders.