Meet the team: Gary Hannis, Head of Butchery
This month we sat down with the head of our Butchery department, Gary Hannis to learn about his role and get at exclusive insight into the Creed Family Butchers team.
How long have you been in the role as the Head of Butchery and how did you end up in this role?
I have been part of the Creed family for 16 years. I started as Butchery Manager, then my position was upgraded to Head of Butchery around 9 years ago where I took over responsibility of the department. I chose this career path before I left school; it is something that I have always been passionate about. I began working part time on a Saturday delivering meat orders on my push bike. From there, I completed a 3-year apprenticeship to gain qualifications, following this I moved into various roles within supermarkets around the country for 20 years. Then I applied for Creed and found myself here.
What does a typical day in the Butchery Department look like?
Our days are pretty structured, 1st shift will start at 8am where the team will start on the production for that day. The team for the second shift will arrive at 11am and continues with production and completing any customer orders. At 2:30 pm the 3rd Shift will start, they will work until 11pm, their role is to complete any outstanding tasks and clear up to make sure the department is clean and tidy for the next day.
In total, there are 13 members in the team. We work on a tier process based on the skill of each team member: Marcin Jankowski is the Production Manager, and he is responsible for overseeing all shifts. Marcin started at Creed as a cleaner and packer. As he gained experience, we encouraged him to move up in the department to: Trainee Butcher, Grade 2 and Grade 1 Butcher, then achieving a Supervisor role prior to his current role.
Other members include, James Phelps, who is the day Supervisor and Jeff Northcott who is the night Supervisor, their roles are to oversee the team that are working those shifts. Rachael Martin is our Butchery administrator and takes care of the legalities within the department.
We have a mixture of Butchers and Packers and they all work together to ensure that our end goal is always achieved. I am lucky to oversee such a hard working team that all work very well together!
What are your tips for how to choose the best cut of meat?
First and most importantly, when choosing meat, you have to look for quality. Check that the product is Red Tractor Assured and RSPCA Accredited as this will ensure that the meat is of a consistent standard and you can really notice the difference in the standard and quality of the product.
What is your favourite cut of meat to eat at home and why?
I love a classic, hearty foods like Meatloaf – this is my favourite to cook at home and the family love it!
What is the butchery department’s bestselling cut of meat?
The bestselling products are our poultry lines from diced to fillets products.
What is a versatile product that can be cooked and used in a variety of ways?
Again, chicken. It is the most versatile product that we sell. Chefs are able to use the meat in many ways: diced, strips, minced, butterflied, fillets. One product can be used in several menu offerings, but cooked in a slightly different way each time.
What makes Creed Family Butchers special?
Being a foodservice provider and having the ability to offer an on site fully accredited butchery service is something that we are very proud of. Combined, as a team we have around 150 years’ experience and knowledge in the butchery industry. This ensures that we are able to guarantee that our customers are receiving top quality, consistent products every time they order. It also gives us the ability to fulfil specialist requests from customers and being able to cater to their needs, for example we can supply specialists cuts like a Tomahawk or Cote de boeuf.
Describe Creed in one word.
Friendly.
