Mahmmon Majeed, a young and eager farmer, wanted to expand his Dahuk feedlot business to add a butcher shop for the residents of Dahuk.  This wasn’t an easy operation for Mahmmon to create the Blann Butcher Shop.  The skills involved in breaking down carcasses takes time and effort in order to have the types of products consumers want to buy. 

Before Mahmmon first started the butcher shop, he used outdated tools and various knives to cut the meats to the specifications of his customers.  However, he soon discovered that his cutting method was wasting a large part of the carcass.  He needed help, so he turned to USAID-Inma for guidance.

Prior to opening and throughout the first months of operation the USAID-Inma meat processing specialist conducted five intensive technical trainings for Blann Butcher Shop employees, which included carcass fabrication, sanitation, safe storage, pricing meat cuts and customer service.  USAID-Inma also helped the owners select new equipment for processing meats, such as sausage makers, and will provide technical assistance on operating the equipment.   

After opening for business, the butcher shop began processing the livestock and now sells 80 to 110 lamb carcasses and six beef carcasses per week.  The average monthly production is 9,856 kilograms of beef and 16,970 kilograms of lamb.  The shop averages 60 customers per day.

Success is also being seen with the shop’s clientele. The company has proved the value of differentiating meat cuts in their butcher shop, which doubled their sales volume. The shop now offers western style steaks, chops and roasts to customers, allowing for less waste per carcass. The shop has also established wholesale accounts with nine restaurants and two hotels in northern Iraq.