Knives Down: A Podcast for the Global Butchery Community

Have you heard our podcast Knives Down yet?

Some of the best conversations never happen on stage. They happen after the competition ends, when the knives are down and the pressure is off. Around cutting tables, at trade shows, over a beer after a long day, or in the shop between customers. Those conversations are where the real insight sits. Stories about how people found the trade, how teams prepare for the World Butchers’ Challenge, what the craft looks like in different parts of the world, and how butchers are thinking about the future of the industry.

We realised there wasn’t really a place where those voices were being captured and shared with the wider community. The World Butchers’ Challenge has grown into a truly global movement over the past decade, connecting butchers from dozens of countries who all share a passion for the craft. But so much of that knowledge, experience and personality stays within the room. Knives Down was created to open that room up a little wider. It is a space for conversations with the people shaping the craft today, from world champions and team captains to mentors, young butchers, industry leaders and the characters who have helped build the culture that surrounds the trade.

Alana Empson,

Podcast Host

The show is hosted by Alana Empson, a butcher, competitor and a very strong voice in the modern butchery community. Alana brings a perspective that only comes from someone who has lived the craft herself. She understands the discipline it takes to master the trade, the creativity that sits behind great product development, and the intensity that comes with preparing for competitions like the World Butchers’ Challenge. That makes the conversations feel less like interviews and more like genuine discussions between people who share the same world. It is relaxed, curious and honest, which is exactly how the best conversations tend to unfold.

The first run of episodes already gives a great sense of what the podcast is about. The opening episode features Rod Slater, founder of the World Butchers’ Challenge, reflecting on how the competition grew from a Trans-Tasman rivalry into the global event it is today. It is a fascinating look at the early vision behind the competition and the community that formed around it. Another episode dives into the mental side of elite performance with Martin Jäntschke, performance coach to the Butcher Wolfpack, exploring how mindset, preparation and team culture play a role in building world-class teams. There is also an episode that turns the microphone on Alana herself, unpacking her journey through the trade and how competitions, mentorship and creativity have shaped her career. One of the most powerful conversations so far is with Simon Taylor, who speaks openly about his career in butchery and how a battle with cancer reshaped his perspective on leadership, life and the community that surrounds the craft.

Those conversations are just the beginning. The plan for Knives Down is simple, but ambitious. To create a growing library of conversations that capture the people, thinking and stories shaping butchery around the world. That might mean sitting down with world champions, talking with apprentices starting their careers, hearing from team captains preparing for the next World Butchers’ Challenge, or exploring how butchers in different countries approach the craft. The industry is evolving quickly, and the voices driving that change deserve to be heard.

If you have not listened yet, you can find Knives Down on Spotify or Apple Podcasts and follow the show so you never miss an episode. And because this podcast is built for the global butchery community, we would love to hear from you. If there is a butcher whose story should be told, a topic the industry should be discussing, or a conversation you think we should have on the show, let us know. The best ideas often come from the shop floor, and that is exactly where this podcast began.