An independent butcher says “making everything” in-house including black pudding is the secret to success in a struggling industry rife with job cuts.

The owners of Faversham’s Tartan Butchers say buying top-quality produce locally has helped them thrive during their six-month stint in an ominous market.

It comes as butchers up and down the country have struggled to survive in recent years, including high-profile Kent family-owned chain JC Rook & Sons, which shut 11 shops in 2022.

William Ross, who took over the East Street spot with wife Jessica after the sudden death of butcher Carl Worgan in January, said: “We're not a supermarket. We're meat specialists so will shop with local farms, things that [others] don’t.

“We only buy free-range chickens, free-range pork and grass-fed beef. We always go for quality over price.

“Everything, even to our black pudding, we make it ourselves. There are not many butchers who can say they do that.

“I think that's what is making us as busy as we are.”

Mr Ross, who lives in Walderslade, says the shop has gone from “strength to strength” with deliveries as far as Medway to help build on the success of their specialist Tartan outlet.

“As a young couple coming into what really is a dying trade, I think we’ve done quite well,” he added.

With the cost of meat and cheese rising as much as 50% in recent times, energy bills have also seen a marked increase in outgoings across the country.

Many butchers are having to introduce online sales and vegan ranges to keep up with changing consumer habits – all while competing with supermarkets’ greater purchasing powers.

Dozens of people were made redundant in Kent after JC Rook & Sons, which was established more than 55 years ago, closed in 2022.

The impact of the pandemic was blamed as its branches, production and distribution facility in Ramsgate and food service business in Shoreham, shut their doors in March that year.

Dymchurch Butchers closed its doors in March last year as footfall dropped and energy bills increased amid the cost-of-living crisis.

In a heartfelt message, its owner also pointed the finger at the pandemic, adding that having to face “another hurdle concerning the energy crisis” was to blame.

“We have thought long and hard about the future at Dymchurch Butchers and unfortunately deem it no longer viable to continue as we are,” they added.

MB Food Hall in Faversham also closed in 2022 while, in 2023, Denis Hills Quality Butcher in Strood faced going out of business due to to rising costs.

But the owner revealed customers saved the business after a month of record sales.

Before Mr Ross took on his Faversham shop, well-known butcher Carl Worgan operated from there until his death in January this year, prompting a multitude of tributes.

The popular family man was the face of CA Worgan’s Butchers, supplying food to Michelin Guide restaurants and being nominated for multiple awards – a hard act to follow.

But Mr Ross revealed he is now set to take on the country’s finest, hoping to win a Britain’s best sausage award next month.

As part of Meat Management’s UK Sausage Week, nine categories including Best Pork Sausage, Best Chipolata and Best Gluten Free/Free From Sausage will be awarded at a luncheon in London on October 28.

Tartan Butchers has been nominated in two categories: Best Lincolnshire Sausage and Best Chicken Sausage.

Mr Ross told KentOnline: “We're quite excited. We can't say officially we've won an award but we’ve beaten hundreds of other butchers out of the country, which I think is quite good for Kent.”