TOP sausage maker in the North-East – that’s the honour which has been given to Peter Hogg of W Fletcher and Sons, the butchery business in Norton.

Peter, who has run the 80-year-old business in Commercial Street for 25 years, since taking over from his father, beat 34 other butchers from across the North East in the competition run by British Pork Executive at the Great Yorkshire Showground.

He won the top award in the traditional pork sausage category with Fletcher’s ‘thick pork sausage’ as well as the home-cured bacon category with the company’s applewood smoked bacon.

Peter, who won two golds, a silver and bronze award in the championships, now goes forward to the Champion of Champions event 2009 at the Butchers’ Hall in London next October.

Peter says he has developed his prize sausage recipe by “listening to advice and criticism” from experts and attending butchery workshops where he picked up tips.

He said: “We were both surprised and delighted with the results. It was the first time we’ve entered an evaluation event so to do so well and receive such praise from the judges was great.”

The pork sausage and bacon are particular favourites with his customers, said Peter, who added that the bacon is made to the shop’s own dry cured recipes by butcher Gary Hutchinson and comes from free range, pedigree pigs.

He added: “At a time when the credit crunch is affecting purchasing habits, it is great to be able to stand out for our quality, award-winning produce and give customers even more reason to shop with us.”