Donald Russell Donald Russell

Our passion

Hans Baumann, Managing Director

"If it wasn't for the dedication and passion of the whole team here, we would just be another butcher, but as it stands we're lucky enough to have established a commitment throughout every department of the company which makes us the trusted and demanded butcher we are today. "

Our customer service

Friederike Clasen - Customer Experience Manager

"Our attention is completely focused on our customers. We make sure that customers not only love the meat and other foods they buy from us but also enjoy shopping with us. Our dedicated staff make this possible.

As Customer Experience Manager, I make myself available to talk to all customers about all possible issues regarding our products and services. We treat our customers as friends and are always looking for ways to get the best for them, whether it is a special request or just a routine meat delivery. We will go out of our way to prove that our effort is hard to match.

I know that our products are of superb quality in every aspect but particularly in taste and it is only natural that we want to share that with others. We love to hear your feedback whether it is online or over the phone and are constantly using it to further improve our service."

The sourcing of our meat

We never compromise on quality, and this is never more evident than when sourcing our meat. Having decades of experience in the buying and selection business, there is no better qualified purchasing team than ours to hand select the finest produce for you.

Only the best producers qualify to supply our meat and the welfare of their animals must be paramount as this yields the most tender and flavoursome meat - something that our buyers have an expert eye for. It is important that the animal must have good conformation (an even fat covering to you and me) and excellent marbling - to a trained eye this is obvious and nothing less will do. This is, however, only half the process and the meat is then hung the old-fashioned way on the bone, here in Inverurie, to allow the rich flavours to develop and for tenderness to optimise.

The standard of our butchery

Founder of Donald Russell, John Stone, co-wrote The Meat Buyers' Guide, a classic text for butchers which established industry-wide standards for cutting, and helped earn him an MBE for services to the meat industry. These standards have been rigorously upheld through the years, and so Donald Russell's richly deserved reputation for immaculate butchery lives on through our current butchery team.

Traditional maturing

Most modern meat suppliers simply do not allow their meat to mature, so it becomes tough and flavourless when cooked. At Donald Russell, we use traditional methods to mature our beef and lamb for up to 35 days (depending on the cut), allowing time for the rich flavours to develop and for the meat to become incredibly tender.

Product development

Achieving great results is easy when your ingredients are this good. Because all products are prepared to such a high standard then careful cooking is required to enjoy them at their best. Our Head Chef Stefan has written guides and recipes to cover our full product range, all of which are available with your order and on request.


Click HERE to view the Head Chef's page.