Listen Now: 
The winner of the prestigious Christie Award for outstanding contribution to the retail meat industry says the honour came as a complete surprise.
Riki Kerekere is the operations manager of Countdown Meat & Livestock in Otahuhu, which provides pre-packaged cuts to the supermarkets throughout the North Island.
Judges praised him for his deep knowledge of the trade and his unique personal approach to mentoring and training staff and apprentices.
"I was standing there thinking 'This guy's good, I like him.' I was looking around the room wondering who it was. They said a bit more and I said 'Gee, this guy sounds really good, I want to meet him.' When they called my name it was such a surprise and I am so honoured to be on the list with so many people in the industry I hold in high regard. They are leaders who paved the way for all of us," he says.
Previous Christie Award recipients include The Mad Butcher, Sir Peter Leitch; Todd Heller, founder of Hellers NZ and butcher and Beef + Lamb New Zealand CEO, Rod Slater.
!["p_facebook"]("/site/uma/images/story_img/facebook.jpg")
& !["p_twitter"]("/site/uma/images/story_img/twitter.jpg")
Copyright © 2020, UMA Broadcasting Ltd: www.waateanews.com
RELATED NEWS
