Sharp Blacks win bronze at butchery Olympics, with a bit of local flavour

JULIA WADE

19 Sept, 2022

Mangawhai’s very own knife-slinger and connoisseur of fine meats, Dan Klink, has returned home a New Zealand champion after his elite team of kiwi sharp-slicers won a prestigious bronze award at a recent international butchery competition.

New Zealand’s national butchery team, the Hellers Sharp Blacks, with Mangawhai Meats co-owner Dan Klink, were strong competitors at the 2022 World Butchers’ Challenge held in California on September 3, taking out the bronze Friedr. Dick trophy, with the silver going to The Makani Australian Butcher team, and Germany’s Butcher Wolfpack team winning the coveted Friedr. Dick Golden Knife Trophy.

Held in Sacramento’s Golden 1 Centre, Dan says it was an incredible win and ‘a pretty crazy sort of experience’.

“The size of the arena was out of this world and they had us all in our own dressing rooms so it felt like we were kind of celebrities,” he says with a laugh. “To be part of the team was quite amazing, there were no egos, everyone just gelled. We learnt as we went and there were no hiccups, our unit worked really well together, just fitted in perfectly, was nice to have that sense of unity.”

Winning the bronze came as a surprise Dan says, with the wait for the announcement at the glamourous gala dinner somewhat nerve-wracking as the Kiwi’s watched the award ceremonies for the young butcher and apprentice competition.

“We had our apprentices ranked quite highly, and unfortunately, none of them got a place anywhere which made us feel a little nervous, started to wonder if we knew what the judges were looking for,” he says. “But then we heard our name get called out for third place, was quite a thrill.”

All competing teams had three-and-a-half hours to transform a side of beef and pork, a whole lamb and five chickens into a themed display to impress the global panel of independent judges who scored on certain criteria such as knife skills, hygiene, safety, time management and saleability as well as style, visual impact and innovation.

“Our theme was like a traditional butcher shop, everything we made was what you would actually find in a meat shop, products which people would actually buy, and this practicality was one of the points the judges liked about us, we weren’t doing whole pigs,” he says. “It was like a marathon, but we got everything done as well as clean up our bench area, something we’d pushed for in our practise times and shows the next level of time management.”

Although the competition was full on, resembling busy scenes from TV’s cooking show MasterChef, the teams also had a chance to socialise over the five day event at a gala dinner put on by the host nation.

“It was good to put a face to butchers who you might follow on social media from around the world, as we’re all butchers at heart, we’re pretty much the same and get on,” Dan says. “Some of the team’s budgets were astronomical, in the millions, and we were operating on a whisker of that, so it was good to know we can accomplish what we did on our skill base not just because of big money. I’m very thankful to be a part of the competition experience and showcase what we can do as Kiwis.”

“To be part of the team was quite amazing, there were no egos, everyone just gelled.”

– Dan Klink

1:

Bronze winners at the butchery Olympics, the 2022 World Butchers Challenge, with local Dan Klink (far right) adding another trophy to his growing list of butchery accomplishments. People will be able to view the trophy in Mangawhai Village meat shop in days to come. PHOTOS/SUPPLIED

2

The Hellers Sharp Blacks’ winning traditional butcher shop display had everything you would actually find in a meat shop, something that impressed the judges.

3:

Dan Klink, the official boner and trimmer of the team, in action.