Meat your maker: The Fairlight Butcher

“What am I going to do with my life?” Good question, yet strong answers can be hard to find. Luckily for Ryan Watson, now better known as the Fairlight Butcher, he’d just finished high school, was holidaying with his family at the Jewel of the Sapphire Coast, Narooma, and when posing this question around the campfire, a bloke he’d never met said, “If you’re not too sure what’s right for you, why not go be a Jackeroo? My mate’s farm takes on youngsters keen to have a crack. Work out your future on the land.”

Within a week, Ryan was off again, this time out to the Egelabra Merino Stud in Warren, an hour and half northwest of Dubbo, to do his interview for the role of Jackeroo.

“My grandparents had a sheep farm in Gippsland,” says Ryan. “Growing up, I’d take any chance I could to get out to the farm. And for a career, I always thought something along the lines of veterinarian studies or zookeeping could be a good fit, something with animals. All I knew was I didn’t want to be in an office.”

Ryan’s office-dodging wish was granted. He scored the Jackerooing role, staying for three and half years at Egelabra. “I had no expectations going in, and it was just such an incredible experience. That station owners become like second parents. The work ethic instilled was priceless, and you end up with more feathers in your cap than you could imagine, proficient in welding, excavating, truck driving, butchery, stock handling, whatever needs doing, you do it.”

Ryan earned his Certificate IV in Agriculture, but as fate would have it, having just met his now wife while she was studying nursing, he was put in touch with Andrew Dawes, of Fairlight Butchers and Gourmet Meats acclaim, on the hunt for an apprentice. The rest, they say, is history. 

Thanks to his time on the land, Ryan has seen firsthand the vast difference low stress stock handling, and regenerative farming practices have, feeding through to the higher nutrient rich, restaurant quality end goods. 

“It’s all about traceability, freshness, buying off the farmer themselves to limit middlemen and knowing precisely where produce is from, how it’s farmed,” says Ryan. “Something at the heart of the Fairlight Butcher is showcasing and sourcing the ethical meat. It’s a way of giving homage to the farmers doing such a great job every day on the land.”

Father of two growing young lads, Hugh and Kendrick, Ryan’s been able to share his love of the land with his family. “As a kid, I remember having that country space as a place to decompress. And to have those open green spaces to enjoy, it’s vital for a child’s overall development,” says Ryan. “Whenever I can, try to get the whole family out bush. It’s like a switch – once you leave the city and come back, you always feel refreshed.”

Whether it’s nature or nurture, his sons love it out at Egelabra as much as their dad. “We were just out there for the Ram auctions, with my son Kendrick all over it, assessing their stocks, bloodlines, fleeces. To see that interest come through, the passion and fire there for farm life, it really melts your heart.”