The Country 14/08/26: Rhys Tamanui talks to Jamie Mackay

Meat Matters Week concludes with the Young Butcher of the Year, presented last night in Auckland to a young gun from Waipawa.

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Episode Transcript

Speaker 1 (00:00):
Meat Matters Week on the Country with PGG Rights and
Livestock the local knowledge and nationwide livestock expertise. It's Meat
Matters Week here on the country thanks to PGG Rights
and Livestock for bringing it to us. And we're going
to conclude with the New Zealand Young Butcher of the Year,
all the way from Waipawa, Central Hawk's Bay. His name

(00:21):
is Cirese Tarmanui and Reese, you're in the big Smoke today,
as am I. Do you realize that you're at the
skytower and I'm at enz z e HQ, were literally
only a couple of hundred meters away. I should have
got you into the studio.

Speaker 2 (00:34):
Good afternoon, afternoon afternoon.

Speaker 1 (00:37):
Hey, congratulations on winning this title. But it's not the
first national honors you've had. You've represented New Zealand before.

Speaker 2 (00:45):
Yeah, so it all started back in twenty twenty two.
I won the New Zealand Apprentice of the Year and
then that got me a ticket over to.

Speaker 1 (00:54):
Not use this Do we need to get someone else
on in case in Paris is thought that out? So
how does a young butcher from a remote place? So
I suppose why PA was remote win a national.

Speaker 2 (01:07):
Title, a lot of behind the scenes hard work with
the crew there at the butchery. Just a lot of
time spent practicing and working away at the craft and
trying to get better every time. And yeah, just a
lot of hard work. Yeah.

Speaker 1 (01:26):
So the championship was held last night on the North Shore. Now,
to win it, you had to go through a two
hour test. You had to break break down a beef rump, pork, shoulder,
lamb leg, two chickens, and a mystery cut and a
retail ready display of value added products. What was the
mystery cut?

Speaker 2 (01:47):
The mystery cut was a lamb loin, so just like
a whole and line that eat line chops out of Yeah, what.

Speaker 1 (01:54):
Is your favorite meat to work with?

Speaker 2 (01:56):
Reese favorite meat to work was probably the beef or pork.
I like breaking down beef. We do that at Waite Arboritary.
We break down all full carcass and stuff like that.
But pork's pretty fun to work with, especially with the
value added creativity sort of stuff. You can do a

(02:17):
lot with it.

Speaker 1 (02:19):
Now you not only receive a trophy in a premium
knife set, and that's a tool of trade obviously for
a butcher. I must talk to you off air and
get the name of a decent knife because mine a
hopeless at my place. You also won a trip, don't you.
Aren't you off somewhere to represent New Zealand around the world.

Speaker 2 (02:38):
Yeah, So part of the prize package was a paid
trip over to the next World Championships, which is in
twenty twenty eight over in Brisbane. And then there's the
opportunity to be selected in the team. So I'm hoping
that I get selected in that and get to compete
over in Brislon. Yeah.

Speaker 1 (02:58):
So, have you got designs on spreading your butchery career
beyond Central Hawk's Bay or are you just a local
lad and there for life?

Speaker 2 (03:08):
Probably part of the furniture at this point. Really, Yeah,
recently bought a house in my power, so that sort
of answers that I guess.

Speaker 1 (03:18):
Are you Ypa's most famous son now, Reese, I don't know.

Speaker 2 (03:24):
Most people might tell you that, I'm not too sure.

Speaker 1 (03:27):
Well, listen, I know that you guys at the YPA
were butcher and thank you very much, are avid listeners
to the country at lunch time, So your workmates back
home and Hawks Bay might be listening to you. Well,
I hope they are, hope.

Speaker 2 (03:39):
So I hope.

Speaker 1 (03:40):
So he res Tarmanui. Congratulations on being the Packed Packaging
Young Butcher of the Year. Good luck representing New Zealand.
And you just hold on the line there and I'm
going to ask you about how to get a sharp knife.
There we go, a ress Tarmanui are here on the
country the young Butcher of the Year.