Meridian Meats is the family business of Charles and Debbie Sutcliffe with son Jim. Charles looks after the family farm at Tetford whilst Jim runs the Louth shop with assistance from Debbie together with their Team of dedicated and experienced staff.
It has been a busy time and a lot has happened since we founded Meridian Meats back in 1997 in order to retail our own Longhorn Beef and the Lamb from our Rare Breed Ewes. We knew then that we were producing high quality products with superior eating qualities so
believing that these did not deserve to be 'lost into the general market' we entered the world
of direct marketing, selling packs of Longhorn Beef and either whole or half lambs for home freezing. This we have done very successfully ever since and we are renowned for the quality of the beef and lamb that we produce. This reputation led to many requests, from smaller households or those with limited freezer space, to purchase smaller quantities. In response we opened our Farm Shop at Tetford early in 2005. This was made possible with the help of generous part funding received from the
Lincolnshire Wolds Sustainable Development Fund.
In July 2007 we launched our Online Shop to provide those not living within easy reach of us the opportunity of experiencing the delights that were on offer at our Shop in the
Heart of the Lincolnshire Wolds. In the late autumn of 2007 a new opportunity arose and by Christmas we had concluded negotiations to take over a retail butchers shop in the nearby town of Louth - the Capital of the Lincolnshire Wolds. By what can only be described as a fortunate coincidence the premises are situated beside where the Meridian Line passes through Louth! We relocated from the Farm Shop to the new premises at the beginning of February 2008.
Since moving to our new shop location we are delighted to report that our business has increased many times over but unfortunately as a result we had to withdraw our online ordering facility for a period of time in an effort to overcome the disappointment caused to customers ordering in good faith only to be told that their choice was temporarily out of stock! By the end of August 2009 we felt sufficiently confident in both our ability to prepare orders and our supply of
beef, pork and lamb to relaunch our Online Shop. We are constantly reviewing the items on offer & adding new ones however should you not be able to find what you are looking for or if you have any special requirements please telephone 01507 603 357 and we will be delighted to discuss your requirements personally with you. If you find it more convenient to email we will be delighted to deal with your enquiry promptly, but this does lack the personal touch!
Jim runs the Louth shop, offering a full range of Lincolnshire Specialities, including our own Gold Award Winning Stuffed Chine, Lincolnshire Sausages, Speciality Sausages, Pork Pies and Haslets.
Jim also dry cures our bacon and gammon, both plain and smoked as well as producing an extensive range of cooked meats, hand made pies, sausage rolls, black puddings and so forth.
In addition to our home produced Longhorn beef and rare breed meats we offer local beef, pork and lamb, all produced to the highest welfare standards on other selected Lincolnshire farms and all offering complete traceability. It is well recognised that some of the finest beef is produced on the natural lush east coast pastures north of the border in Scotland. Regular deliveries from
Scotch Premier Meat of Inverurie ensure that superb Aberdeen Angus beef, raised in its native Aberdeenshire, is also always available. To complete the line-up we stock
S.J.Frederick & Son's Label Anglaise traditional free range chickens,
Farm Fresh Duck from Rothwell Lincolnshire and when Christmas comes we stock very, very special turkeys from
Copas in addition to seasonal poultry from local producers.
We are members of the
Guild of Q Butchers as well as being Lincolnshire’s only
Traditional Breeds Accredited Family Butchers, specialising in high class meats from rare and traditional native breeds. We are members of
Tastes Of Lincolnshire, a popular and successf
ul scheme set up by Lincolnshire County Council, with an emphasis on th
e importance of locally sourced and produced food and drink. The latest issue of Good Taste Magazine from Tastes of Lincolnshire, issue 10 published in September, includes an article entitled 'Offally Good' by Eric Phipps all about the culinary delights which can be economically prepared using offal. It features a number of photos of Jim making our prize winning haslets in the preparation room behind our shop in Louth. Don't forget to pick up your free copy from the shop when you next visit, it is packed with news, recipes and stories about Lincolnshire’s regional producers, suppliers, tea rooms, restaurants and more. Alternatively click the image on the right to order one online.
Lincolnshire boasts some really wonderful speciality foods and here at Meridian Meats we are particularly pleased to have been placed Runners-Up in the Grower Retailer section of the
Tastes of Lincolnshire Awards in 2005 and moreover delighted that our
Little London Cottages, were Overall Winners the same year in their section. Only the very best quality, natural foods are offered by Meridian Meats; everything that we sell has been tried and tested by us and most items make regular appearances on our own dining table! We feel justifiably proud of the quality of produce we offer. Our succulent Home Produced Longhorn Beef, our Lamb, our own handmade Sausages and Speciality pies, Cooked Meats and local specialiaties represent all that is best in Regional Food.
Charles, Debbie and Jim Sutcliffe
Tetford, September 2009.
