[HeronsReach]

We have been breeding saddlebacks for twelve months now, and have been selling the meat. This has been slaughtered and butchered by the abatour. We take orders from our customers they cut to order. The trouble with this is it costs a fortune and takes quite a chunk of our profit. If I were to do this myself, could it be done from our kitchen or would I have to have an all singing dancing butchers cutting room with washable walls and floors etc?

[Eve]

Yes, you would have to abide by all the hygiene regulations.

 

[rbarlo32]

then you would have to get a hygine cert. food standards approval and a commercial setup. it will be cheaper to have your butcher to do it unless your planning large scale. your could haggle on price if your giving them lots of work.

[HappyHippy]

There's a farmer near me who wanted to do his own - he ended up buying a butcher's shop rather than have to do all the alterations and become certified ! When it comes to selling to the general public it's probably less hassle to sell vodka than processed meat ! What are you paying for kill and cut ? It may be worth checking if there are any butchers or other slaughter houses in your area that are a bit more competitive price wise.
HTH
Karen

[oaklandspigs]

Sorry, but am going to echo what everyone else says - the law is not on your side, you would easily spend a few thousand to create an area and you'd never make your money back unless your herd is a couple of hundred strong!

[robert waddell]

i think you should add a nought on there the last time i heard of purpose built premises fully kitted out was over £20000 just pricing equipment block stainless table mincer sausage stuffer  slicer stainless bowls knives etc etc etc butchers block there was one in an auction in the summer £400 and it was stinking rotten  high capacity stuffer £20000 all bells and whistles it cost me about £2000 just to make the freezer shed presentable and that was o/h doing all the work

[JulieS]

I'd agree with about £20k - £25k. That's around the figure it cost us to convert part of a barn and to buy the machines, and that was with my husband doing all the work and with mostly previously used equipment.

There are lots of people selling secondhand stuff, you have to be really careful though because most of it is not great.  I'd recommend that you make sure you view everything before you buy.

[HeronsReach]

I've just had five pigs killed. They were turned into chops, joints, sausage and we had eight hams cured for £306 (including killing). I suppose its not a bad price but we really would like to do our own recipe sausage, but the cost your all quoting seem very prohibitive. Looks like we'll park that idea!!!

[robert waddell]

come on smallholders think on their feet scroung scavange and modify anything and everything butchers block make one either hornbeem or beach small to medium sized mincers/stuffers/slicers are not that dear liquiditation sales for stainless equipment or scrapies the list is endless

[oaklandspigs]

Have you a breakdown of those costs?

Butchering 8 yourself would take days and days without lots of practise and training, but if it's only the suasages you're interested in doing yourself, check out the local agricultural college.  Ours (Plumpton College on Sussex) hires out it's cutting room, so you could do sausages there. 

Of course if it's just for you and immediate family living with you, you can do sausages in your own home , but for 8 pigs that a lot of sausages !!

[robert waddell]

eight is an awfull lot of meat at the one time two at a time or three once you know what you are doing would be better some amount of chest freezers for eight

[HeronsReach]

Where did the eight pigs creep in??

I think I should rephrase the question

Does anyone know what the basic standards are to convert a solid block built garage into a cutting room???

[robert waddell]

oaklands put 8 on their reply
drainage point in the floor
wash down walls tiled
two sinks with runninghot and cold water
sealed against vermin entry
lowered ceiling with special lighting watterprof
stainless tabels
plans drawn up and approved by building control and enviromental health
etc etc etc

[oaklandspigs]

Where did the eight pigs creep in??

I think I should rephrase the question

Does anyone know what the basic standards are to convert a solid block built garage into a cutting room???

Sorry  was me that quoted 8 - had just done a long answer to another forum question, and had not switched my brain.  However you quoted that you had just done 5, and this would still take ages to do yourself.

If you want to convert your garage (ignoring planning permission for change of use - which you may well not get esp. if residential area!), suggest you contact trading standards - many (but by no means all) are helpful, and will give you guidance.  Unfortunately some will just tell you to convert it and then they'll inspect and tell you what you have done wrong! 

Your original post was based on cost, and I feel you will never recoop costs unless you are going into this full time. 

Good luck whatever you decide to do

[Rockrothwell]

The REAL problem, aside from the burocraps being on the take (read owned outright by the Bilderberg group), is finding an honest butcher... Maybe you will be the first on the planet!

Have you EVER heard of a butcher who buys meat?

Have you ever been to a livestock auction and seen what "upmarket" "respectable" retailers and butchers buy for YOUR table? Scare the bejesus out of you, guaranteed!

The only way to do it is to sell LIVE ANIMALS, then the services of feeding, handling, etc, slaughtering, butchering. Then you know what is going into it = crutial these days = and know that you are not getting YOUR carcass back (and not the seemingly standard "butcher switcheroo" )

Either that or do it yourself, or You could hire someone to come & slaughter it for you, so you know there's no behind your back fiddle,  or you can send it to an abatoir to do "the deed", bring it home & cut it up on your kitchen table. If you go the abatoir route, you can watch the whole process. if they will not allow you to watch, go elsewhere as they are clearly trying to hide something.

Doing your own butchering Might not be as pretty as packages from the shop, but what's inside willc be a known quantity, not filth, deception, injected water, fillers in sausages, someone elses year old carcass, weights with thumb on scale.

Sadly, this is the voice of experince.