Watching the next generation of young butchers go head to head as part of the Battle of the Butchers competition earlier this month – a stepping stone to the Australian Butchers Team for the top performers – Brisbane based butcher Billy Gibney was happy to take some time out to share his thoughts on modern retail meat trends, customer buying habits and how cost of living pressures are playing out at the shop front.

Billy is the owner of the Meat at Billy’s, a chain of premium meat retail and home delivery outlets, along with a popular online ordering and click and collect service.

He also serves the industry on the Australian Meat Industry Council Queensland board, and is the Australian Team Manager for the 2028 World Butchers Challenge to be held in Brisbane.

Billy Gibney (left) participating in the Queensland Food and Hospitality Expo where he also helped co-ordinate the Queensland Final of the 2026 Battle of the Butchers Competition.

Billy is a natural showman with a distinctive style and an easy charm that make him a favourite in front of an audience and has a genuine knack for connecting with people, sharing his knowledge and bringing the craft of butchery to life.

Speaking at the recent Queensland Food and Hospitality Expo in Brisbane, he told Beef Central that rising cost pressures on family food budgets are indeed influencing consumer purchasing habits, with sales of staples such as beef mince and chicken increasing as customers look for protein and meal options that will stretch further for their hard-earned money.

However, quality remained a priority, he said.

“People are looking for the best value for money buys and bargains where possible, however they are still seeking to purchase and home cook a quality red meat product.

“They may purchase a little less of our premium beef products at the moment, but we know that most people will still spend on quality.

“And we find that as things get tight many of our regular customers will tend to cut back on other discretionary purchases such as coffee and still spend on a good steak.”

“People are also much more aware of the health and nutritional benefits of a good home cooked protein-based meal, and many are now also choosing to cook at home rather than go out to eat”.

Asked what his customers request the most, Billy says this was a “no brainer”: “Quality grass-fed beef first, second and third”.

“A grass feed beef product with a marbling score between 4 and 5 is the sweet spot and we source from a number of grass-fed producers and wholesalers across the country to find the quality our customers are looking for.

“The question of provenance, animal welfare and environmental impact is also becoming a much more important factor in the purchasing decision, and we are getting more customers asking about where our beef is produced and how it is produced.

“That story is important for us to tell. As their butcher our customers trust us to deliver what the label promises, but we also have a responsibility to the producers and suppliers who trust us to represent their products with honesty and sell them with integrity.”

Tallow on-trend

An interesting and increasingly profitable value-add trend Billy has noticed recently is the increasing number of customer requests for tallow as a natural and healthier alternative cooking agent.

When asked what might surprise a group of cattle producers if they were to spend time behind the counter of one of his retail butcher shops on a busy day, Billy considered the question carefully before responding with a one word answer: “professionalism.”

“I think they’d be surprised by the level of professionalism butchers bring to their work every day. Many work 12-plus-hour days, six days a week, preparing and presenting products to the highest standards, maintaining rigorous food safety protocols, helping customers understand different cuts and offering advice on cooking and menu options.

“It’s an essential service to the community, and one that often goes unrecognised.”

Gun butcher Luke Thomas from Millers Gourmet Meats in Toowoomba competing in the Battle of the Butchers competition held at the Queensland Food and Hospitality Expo in Brisbane earlier this month.

Billy is confident the future of the industry is in safe hands, having watched Luke Thomas and the other finalists go head-to-head in the recent Battle of the Butchers competition.

The live 90-minute skills challenge saw competitors break down beef, lamb and pork, transforming the cuts into innovative, high-value retail products.

Billy watched with evident pride as the next generation of butchers showcased their skill, creativity and craftsmanship.

A young Toowoomba butcher from Millers Gourmet Meats, Luke performed exceptionally well to earn a coveted spot on the Australian Young Butchers Team and will now represent Australia and compete at the 2028 World Butchers Challenge along with five other top young butchers.

At just 25-year-old Luke is already one of the most highly decorated identities in competitive butchery and earlier in this year he was crowned the World Butcher Wars champion at Sydney Olympic Park where he defeated 26 other international competitors. (See earlier Beef Central article and video here).

He has also previously won the prestigious Austral National Apprentice Butcher title in 2023.

2028 World Butchers’ Challenge Brisbane-bound in meat Olympics event

Up to 20 international teams involving up to 200 elite butchers are expected to compete before an audience of up to 10,000 people from 9-12 March in Brisbane in 2028 in their version of the butchers’ Olympics, after the Australian Meat Industry Council won a competitive bidding process to host the event, the tenth since it started 17 years ago as a competition between NZ and Australia.

Announcing Brisbane as the event host city earlier this year, the Chairman of the World Butchers’ Challenge, Robert Constable said that hosting the World Butchers’ Challenge in Queensland was a tremendous opportunity for Australia.

“It brings the world’s best to Brisbane’s doorstep and gives us the chance to show them just how exceptional the Australian meat and butchery industry really is – while inspiring the next generation to see what’s truly possible in this craft.”

Billy is proud to lead the Australian squad as Team Manager for the 2028 World Butchers’ Challenge in Brisbane.

The Australian contingent comprises the Senior Team, six butchers competing together as a team, the Young Butcher Team, six butchers competing individually, and an apprentice team whose members are yet to be announced.

From now until March 2028, the teams will undertake an intensive program of training and preparation, refining their skills and developing the precision, teamwork and creativity needed to compete on the world stage.

These butchers represent some of the best talent Australia has to offer, combining exceptional knife and butchery skills with creativity, innovation and the ability to transform meat into outstanding retail-ready products.

Just as importantly, working within the competition’s strict rules and guidelines is essential to delivering a successful performance.

“We have a great team and we’re excited to be hosting the challenge here in Brisbane. There’s a lot of work ahead of us between now and March 2028, but we have the talent, skill and commitment to put on a great performance.

“The competition demands much more than technical butchery skills. Creativity, innovation, precision and the ability to work within strict rules and guidelines are all critical. As Team Manager, I’ll be coordinating training sessions, working closely with our sponsors and helping showcase Australian butchery to the world.”

The Australians narrowly missed out on winning gold in previous competitions, finishing on the podium in both Sacramento (2022) and Paris (2025) and they will be chasing their first ever ‘official’ World Butcher Challenge title on home soil, with reigning champions France firmly in their sights.

A highlight of the 2028 program will also be the introduction of the World’s Best Sausage Awards, a standalone competition recognising excellence across beef, pork and gourmet sausage categories, and celebrating one of the industry’s most iconic products.

As the Team Australia Manager, Billy will be quietly assessing the oppositions strengths and weakness and passing on his years of experience, skill and knowledge to his team, to ensure that at the end of the day it is Team Australia holding up the 2028 World Butchers Challenge prize: for the world’s best butchers of the world’s best beef.

Changing perceptions about the traditional butchery

Opening his first Meat at Billy’s store in Ashgrove in 2009 he was driven by a desire to change perceptions of the traditional butcher shop.

His focus on exceptional produce and outstanding customer service quickly earned a loyal following.

In 2016, he expanded to Rosalie, building on that success and further establishing the business as a much-loved part of Brisbane’s food community.

In 2013, he launched Meat at Billy’s Online, making it easier for customers across Brisbane to order quality meat for home delivery, with Click & Collect added as another convenient option.

In March 2023, he opened Eat at Billy’s in Rosalie, bringing his butcher’s approach to the sandwich bar with generous serves and quality meat at the heart of every offering.

“We saw the move towards the wholesome sandwich trend as a significant and growing one and wanted to offer what a butcher would put between two pieces of bread. That’s always going to be my signature, showcasing the meat and providing a generous portion per serving. Being a butcher, we can be a bit more giving, so to speak.”

In January 2026, Billy expanded to Brisbane’s southside with a new Meat at Billy’s store at Woolloongabba.

Throughout the business’s growth, the customer experience has remained central, with Billy crediting his team and their commitment to great service as key to its success.

That commitment is reflected in the many Queensland and national Australian Meat Industry Council (AMIC) awards the business has won for its sausages, burgers and metropolitan retail butchery.

Competitors hard at it in the Battle of the Butchers competition held as part of the Queensland Food and Hospitality Expo in Brisbane recently, all seeking to make the Australian Team to compete at the 2028 World Butchers Challenge to be held in Brisbane.

Billy Gibney (left) with MLA Retail Business Meat Manager and Corporate Butcher Doug Piper at the recent 2026 Queensland Food and Hospitality Expo Butchers Challenge Final in Brisbane. MLA and AMIC are industry sponsors of the Australian Team for the 2028 World Butcher Challenge.