22/10/2026
"If it appears cheap then someone or something down the line is paying the the true cost"
As we begin thinking about one of the most important meals of the year, there’s something we feel is worth talking about: the cost of beef.
In my 25 years in this industry, I’ve never known beef to be quite so challenging. Prices have risen considerably, and it’s something being felt throughout the supply chain, from the farmers raising the cattle to the butchers prearing the meat and, ultimately, the customers buying it.
There are several reasons behind this. British cattle numbers have fallen, supplies are tight, and farmers continue to face rising costs. Beef is also a product that cannot simply be produced more quickly when demand increases. Raising cattle takes years, and the decisions made on farms today can take a long time to have an impact on the availability of beef tomorrow.
For independent butchers like us, these changes are impossible to ignore. We buy our meat, prepare it by hand and, where appropriate, mature it to develop its flavour and quality. We don't have the buying power of the major supermarkets, and we feel changes in the cost of the meat we buy directly.
Of course, we understand that rising food prices are affecting household budgets, and Christmas is no exception. We know people will be looking carefully at what they spend, and we think that's entirely reasonable.
Our aim has always been to offer the best meat we can source at a fair and honest price. Our prices need to reflect the cost of buying that meat, running the business and paying our team fairly, while allowing us to keep doing what we do. It's about finding a balance that works for everyone, including the farmers who produce our meat and the customers who trust us to provide it.
We're not in this to get rich. We're here because we care about good meat, the people who produce it and the craft of butchery. We want to keep doing it properly, and we want to be here for our customers for many Christmases to come.
Thank you for continuing to support Block & Butcher, the British farmers we work with and independent businesses like ours.