BUTCHER Greg Hull has proved his pies really are upper crust when they were hailed the best in the North-west.

At least that was the opinion of judges at a top competition where Mr Hull, aged 41, who runs Frasers Butchers in Bolton, got more than a slice of success.

There may have been 400 entrants for the Excellence in Meat Technology Awards but Frasers beat them hands down -- winning three of the ten categories.

Mr Hull attended a big bash at the Haydock Park racecourse to pick up his awards.

He munched through the competition to grab a prize for the Best Pork Pie, the Best Huntsmen Pie (a combination of pork, turkey and stuffing) and the Best Ploughman's Pie (made up of pork, pickle and cheese). And for someone who only began making the delicacies two years ago, the accolades came as something of a surprise.

Mr Hull said: "I didn't expect to win three categories but it just shows that if you use fine ingredients you can't go wrong. Get good meat in the pies and you are 95 per cent of the way there. The rest of the flavour is added by the pastry and we have got that down to a tee as well."

Mr Hull has owned Frasers, in Rishton Lane, Great Lever, for seven years. He used to specialise in sausages for which he has also picked up an award. The Emtech Awards are said to be the North-west's most sought after accolades for butchers and are handed out every two years.

Mr Hunt said a special mention had to go to Alison Bradley, the firm's food technician and the woman who made the pies. "She worked out a brilliant recipe so much of the credit must go to her," he said.