Making sure the slice is right

Each team of butchers will have two hours to create a top-shelf butchery display.

Two Northland butchers are in a North Island team selected to compete in the inaugural North versus South Battle of the Butchers contest next month.

The Northland pair - Abigail Lane from Pak 'n'Save Kaitaia and Dion Puncheon from Regent New World, Whangarei - are teamed up with Isaac Grammer and David Porter from Harmony Foods and Phill Pirie from Pokeno Bacon.

Abigail, 27, is the only woman in the inter-island butchery contest.

She won the Auckland/Northland Regional Butcher Apprentice of the Year title in 2011 and completed her three-year butchery apprenticeship at Pak 'n' Save in November last year.

Dion, 37, is from Moerewa and worked at the Affco meatworks there before starting with Regent New World about nine years ago.

Their North Island team will compete against five South Island butchers at the 2013 Retail Meat New Zealand conference in New Plymouth on April 20.

Each team of butchers will have two hours to create a top-shelf butchery display using a beef hindquarter, a side of lamb, a side of pork and three chickens.

If Abigail, Dion and their three teammates carve up the competition they will take on the Wedderburn Sharp Blacks national butchery team in a trial later this year.

The trial will find the top butchers in the country who will travel to Britain for an international tri-series next year.

Dion said he had not yet travelled to even the South Island so taking a trip to Britain would be "pretty cool".

Abigail also liked the look of the prize and promised to give the Battle her best shot.