Progress May Not Be Such a Good Thing
Progress may not always be such a good thing. Just because you can do something doesn’t necessarily mean you should. Many of the things we do nowadays aren’t necessarily better than the ways they replaced—just more complicated. Of course, this is just the author’s opinion, for what it’s worth.
I feel deeply sorry that young people today are unable to experience many of the things some of us older folks got to enjoy. It was a simpler time when a person’s character was more important than how fast he or she could do something. It was a time when your neighbors were almost like family, and everyone looked out for each other. Those days are long gone. Modern attitudes are what contributed to the demise of the Meat Department and the loss of your local butcher.
The Community and Businesses of the Past
Let me tell you about a different world—a world that existed 40 or 50 years ago. People were expected to have high morals and ethics. Everyone personally knew most of the people in their neighborhood. The policeman was not just a faceless entity behind the wheel of a patrol car. He walked the same streets everyone else did and knew everyone by name. He was friendly and helpful, but tough when the situation called for it. He was a peace officer, rather than a paramilitary “Rambo” wannabe.
Businesses were different as well. When your car needed gasoline, you didn’t pull into a place that sold lottery tickets, beer, and had a stranger behind the counter, with automatic pumps where you had to pay before you could pump your own gas. No, you pulled into a service station where all they did was sell gas and car supplies. When you pulled in, 3 or 4 people would rush out to clean your windows and check your tires, oil, and other fluids while your car was being fueled. You never had to get out of your car, and all of the staff knew you by name. Milk and eggs were brought to your doorstep, and when you went to a department store, the clerks actually knew everything about the items they were selling and would help you find exactly what you needed.
One of the best things about those times was the local butchers. Back then, the butcher shop received whole sides of beef and could custom-cut whatever you wanted. If you needed a 12-pound roast for a large family gathering, it was no problem. They could offer you advice on how to store and cook different cuts, and they would grind your hamburger to your specifications. Best of all, they knew your name and most of your family members. Everyone was a member of the community, and no one was anonymous. The goal was to provide great service to customers, not just generate profits or cut costs.
Then came the supermarket. This marked the beginning of the demise of the Meat Department and the loss of your local butcher. In order to offer better prices, the large supermarkets began purchasing meat in bulk. Meat processors shifted their focus from neighborhood butcher shops to larger grocery stores, shipping meat in pre-cut cryovac blocks. This allowed stores to only order the cuts they wanted, which they could sell quickly. This was still OK for the butcher shop, as it allowed them to focus on the cuts they wanted, but there was a downside: it reduced the need for skilled meat cutters. Over time, fewer and fewer skilled meat cutters were being trained, and custom cuts became harder to find. The focus shifted from providing service to simply selling inventory. Your specific needs took a back seat to the companies moving meat and getting your money. Their convenience became more important than yours.
Now, we’ve entered a new era where most meat is pre-cut into individual portions, and the stores simply weigh and re-package it. The skilled meat cutters are gone. Today, meat department employees are little more than store clerks, wrapping pre-cut meat and placing it on the shelves. Local butcher shops have been replaced by the deli section in grocery stores, where pre-made lunch meats are simply sliced to order. Instead of getting advice on cheaper cuts of meat like ‘Merlot Steak’ and ‘Hanger Steaks’ when you’re on a tight budget, you’re left staring at rows of plastic-wrapped foam trays.
In the 21st century, all of our services are performed by strangers. In many cases, people live next door to each other for years and never even know each other’s names. “Service with a smile” is rare these days. The majority of our food is pre-measured, pre-wrapped, and pre-priced.
There may be a bright spot on the horizon. In some areas, public demand has brought back the local butcher shop. In places like New York, Boston, Berkeley, Indianapolis, Portland, and other cities, custom meat cutters are returning to the market, and customers are responding. The faltering economy has sparked renewed interest in cheaper cuts of meat not available through the mass-market model, such as pork bellies, oxtails, and trotters (pig’s feet). Now, more and more local butchers are hanging out their shingles.
It’s too early to tell if this trend will continue, but we can only hope. There is a renewed interest in all things involving empowerment, such as home gardens, canning, and pickling. Some stores are beginning to refocus on customer service in an effort to recover business lost to the internet. People are also beginning to take an interest in one another again. As long as these businesses can maintain an acceptable profit margin, perhaps these trends will continue. Who knows? Maybe we can look forward to fresh milk and eggs on our doorsteps every morning, like we used to. It’s possible these trends could reverse the demise of the Meat Department and the loss of your local butcher. Keep your fingers crossed.
