A 20 year-old butcher from Oldmeldrum is flying the flag for Scotland by successfully becoming one of only three UK finalists in a national competition.

Andrew Peter, who works at Davidsons Butchers in Inverurie, began his apprenticeship there less than three years ago and last week was announced as a finalist in The Meat Trade Journal’s UK Young Butcher of the Year.

The accolade will add to the number that Davidsons Butchers, has amassed in the past few years, including being the current holder of the UK Butchers Shop of the Year title.

Andrew first began working for John Davidson as a Saturday boy back in 2007, and in 2010, while at college he realised that butchery was exactly what he wanted to do and went back to Davidsons to begin his Apprenticeship.

Andrew commented: “I really missed the customer interaction, the job variety, the passion for perfection that is paramount to every aspect of Davidsons – and I missed the banter! I’ve learned so much so quickly here, and I think being a finalist in this competition shows how far I’ve come in a relatively short space of time.

John Davidson was delighted to make the announcement to Andrew and the rest of the team.

“ We are all very proud of Andrew, and look forward to the awards ceremony later in the year.”

The Meat Trade Journal awards recognise and reward the top butcher’s shops across six regions in the UK, as well as crowning one as the overall UK Butcher’s Shop of the Year.  They also include Young Butcher of the Year, Farm Shop of the Year, Halal Butcher’s Shop of the Year and Innovation of the Year.

The venue for this year’s prestigious awards will take place at The Landmark London Hotel in Marylebone on Thursday, November 22.