Pete McDonald

Acting President

Georgia Northwestern Technical College

One Maurice Culberson Drive

Rome GA 30161

Dear Mr. McDonald,

I have worked for a well-respected grocery industry trade publication, The Shelby Report, for the past 24 years. We are based in Gainesville, Ga., and produce regional editions that cover the entire United States.

Mr. Leon Wildberger approached me about the need for a meat-cutting course that is closer than Mississippi, and I have been doing some reading on the issue. While it’s true that some chains, namely Walmart, have gone to prepackaged meat programs where the meat is cut at the processing facility rather than the store, there are many consumers who still want to be able to speak with a butcher or meat cutter about their purchase, and many who have freshness concerns about meat that was cut somewhere else and had to spend an undisclosed amount of time on a truck to get to the store.

There also is a movement in this country to buy more locally produced products, to include not only local produce but also locally produced meat and packaged goods as well. Having qualified meat cutters in cities and towns across America is vital to meeting that need.

The meat department has been shown in many supermarket industry studies to be a major determining factor in where consumers do their grocery shopping. Supermarkets would be wise to make sure their meat department staff members, top to bottom, be well educated in the art of meat cutting. While the meat industry has largely relied on seasoned butchers passing their knowledge on through an apprenticeship-type setup, that is not necessarily happening as much anymore as grocery stores, like many other industries, have cut back their labor force in the interest of the bottom line.

Supermarket industry studies also have shown that attracting the next generation to the industry is a serious concern. Offering them a chance to learn a skill that can become a career track may serve to reinvigorate tomorrow’s grocery industry.

I hope you will seriously consider implementing a meat cutting course at your college.

Sincerely,

Lorrie Griffith

Editor

Shelby Publishing Co. Inc.

517 Green Street

Gainesville GA 30501