Gavin Williamson, MP for South Staffordshire, visited Pattingham Butchers recently to congratulate them on defending their Black Pudding Champion title.
Martin Thomas Butchers Pattingham on Sunday successfully defended their black pudding title at the Confederation of Yorkshire Butchers Councils' annual products competition this time held in Bradford at the Great Yorkshire Pork Pie, Sausage & Products Competition.
Last year, the Pattingham business based butchers were the first non-Yorkshire winner of one of the main prizes with its real ale black pudding, but this year they stuck to a more traditional recipe. However, the quality still shone through and impressed the judges.
This is the second success of the year for Craig Thomas who earlier this year won was the only gold medallist at the IFFA in Frankfurt, Germany, with their beer black pudding.
Craig is the sixth generation of butchers in his family, with the current shop set up in 1971 by his grandfather. It was taken over by his dad Martin in 1978.
Commenting on their success Gavin said: “Many congratulations to Craig and all staff at Martin Thomas Butchers. They have proved once again that their produce is the best quality in the country. This has been a brilliant year for them after their gold medal win in Germany and I am sure that next year will bring even more achievements.
“This is the second time in a number of weeks I’ve visited South Staffordshire businesses congratulating them on their victories in competitions across the country. This is a phenomenal achievement for both businesses and showing once again that we have the best butchers in the country right here on our doorstep.”