Butcher or Butcher Assistant
Vessel Meats is a dedicated whole animal craft butchery that focuses on showcasing the best meat
that Nova Scotia has to offer. As we enter into our 10 th year of business this year, we are inviting
food service leaders to bring their skills to the table and work beside us to continue to pave
pathways for local food in Nova Scotia. Our business started in 2014 at the Alderney Landing
Farmer’s Market and we are still grounded on a solid community foundation in Dartmouth as
well as two farm markets in Halifax. Our business values it’s strong roots in customer service and
the community we serve and we are looking for strong leaders with similar values to help is take
our business to the next level.
Butcher or Butcher Assistant:
Our shop is dedicated to whole animal breakdown, capitalizing on each individual muscle and
learning the best application for each part. We have a strong focus on minimizing waste and the
successful candidate will have a strong understanding of waste management and working
efficiently. We focus on education and maintaining a positive work environment for both clients
and staff. We are looking for people who have fresh perspectives and want to learn new
techniques and implement new ideas.
People who excel in this business bring to the table a professional attitude, thrive in customer
service, and enjoy talking to people about the products they craft. We thrive on transformation
and encourage creativity and diversity in the products we create and sell. With a lot of moving
parts, attention to detail and organizational skills are a must. We are looking for people who can
showcase their strong communication skills and have skills that can contribute to a growing
organization.
The goal for this role is to bring in someone with basic meat cutting experience who wants to
build on their meat foundation and develop into a leading industry professional.
Ideal candidates will bring to this position:
- 1 – 2 years of meat retail or butcher shop experience.
- Solid understanding of basic food handling.
- Understanding of food waste management.
- Capability and interest in customer service.
- Attention to detail and pride in one’s work and ability to work clean.
- Problem solving and organization skills.
- Creativity and interest in food and cooking.
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About this role:
Working in this role, successful applicants will learn true whole carcass breakdown, as all the meat
we sell comes in on the rail direct from the abattoir every week. Butchers work quickly and
efficiently to transform swinging carcasses into cuts that are retailed, distributed, and transformed
into a diverse line of raw and ready-to-eat products we sell at our shop and three farm market
locations.
The beginning of the week is spent breaking down meat and preparing it to be sold in the retail
capacity working with waste management in mind.
Butchers are responsible for:
- Preparing all retail and wholesale orders.
- Customer service, greeting clients and helping direct them to the cuts that will best suit
their needs.
- FIFO and ensuring that all products get cycled and used in a timely manner.
- Preparing raw meats for brining or transformation including making sausage, smoking,
and other deli meats.
- Creating value added products such as kabobs, burgers, and other seasonal products.
- Taking orders, answering the phone and advising clients.
- Preparing and recording information for wholesale accounts.
- Packaging, labelling, and ensuring information is correct when showcasing products.
Butcher Assistants will be coming in without meat retail experience and will work to assist the
head butcher while they are growing their skill set. They will receive hands on learning of the
above requirements and they will start off learning the case, doing customer service, packaging,
labelling, organizing, and assisting members of the team as they grow their understanding of core
competencies. We are excited to read your resume that outlines what skills you will bring to this
position.
We are looking for people who have a basic meat retail background who want to grow into
industry leaders. At our company you will experience:
- Full carcass breakdown and receive a full “meat” education including steak cuts,
differences in carcass, transformation, and all the small details as well as how to showcase
them to clients.
- You will learn HACCP food safety principals and how to implement food traceability
programs.
- You will learn waste management and how to minimize waste in a whole animal facility.
- You will experience various work locations including farmer’s markets and becoming a
member of a regular retail community.
- Opportunity to grow your education as far as you are interested in taking it.
Offerings and Perks:
- The pay level for this position will depend on the applicants competencies they apply to
the above with a range from $16 hourly to $22 hourly, depending on applicable skill sets.
- Benefit program including dental (50% employer/employee contribution).
- Free sandwich on Friday.
- Staff discount.
- Set two day weekend every week (Sunday and Monday).
- No evening shifts.
- Two week vacation in January.
If you are interested please email a resume to vesselrecruits@gmail.com with "Butcher" or "Butcher Assistant" in the subject.