SALES of meat have soared in family butchers across the borough in the wake of the horsemeat scandal.
Independent meat traders in Ingatestone, Mountnessing, Hutton and Shenfield are all reporting a huge upturn in sales with burgers and beef mince flying off the shelves.
The massive hike in sales of UK-sourced beef comes after several supermarkets had to remove burgers from their shelves after the products were found to contain traces of equine DNA last month.
Duncan Hepburn, the owner of two butchers' shops under his family name, has seen a 35 per cent boost in burger sales and a 20 per cent rise in trade overall.
The father-of-two revealed that many more people have been asking questions about where his meat is sourced since the scandal broke.
He said: "What we are seeing more than anything from people is the concern, not about themselves, but for their children – they want to know what they are feeding them."
Speaking from his shop in Roman Road, Mountnessing, Mr Hepburn, who sources the meat used in his homemade burgers from UK farms, said his patties are 100 per cent horsemeat free.
He added: "We like to do things nicely here and I could never be so desperate as to earn a living by misleading the public in that manner."
Up the road in Ingatestone High Street, Martin Green, the proprietor of Green's Family Butchers, confirmed he has enjoyed a 25 per cent rise in sales of beef mince and burgers since the controversy.
"There is an uplift in trade and an awful lot of questions," the 54-year-old said.
"There is a lot more talk between customers and myself about where meat comes from and I have been advising them that my meat is local and traceable."
Mr Green, who has owned the shop for three years, confirmed his burgers are homemade and horse-free and that his latest batch of beef was bought in Billericay.
Meanwhile, L Buckle, in Hutton Road, Shenfield, has began making burgers out of season and confirmed an overall upturn in sales of around ten per cent.
Brindon Addy, chairman of the Q Guild, which represents 110 independent butchers (including Hepburns) across the UK, said: "Since the horsemeat scandal hit the news, I think consumers have become aware that there isn't transparency in purchasing meat, in particular, burgers, from their supermarket.
"This isn't the case with Q Guild butchers, who can show the provenance of all the products they sell."
