Butchers in Leicestershire have reported a rise in trade on the back of the horse meat scandal.
They believe consumers are starting to turn their backs on processed meat and the supermarkets that sell it in favour of traditional butchers.
Andrew Sykes, who runs Andrew Sykes butchers, in Leicester Market, said: "I have seen an increase in the number of customers coming to us since the story came out about horse meat.
"We have had a lot of people joking about the horse meat but, at the same time, asking good, serious questions about traceability.
"Customers want to buy quality meat and want the reassurance they don't necessarily get from supermarkets, and we are more than happy to help, as our meat travels very few miles before it is put on display."
Michael Mason, a butcher at Joseph Morris, in Whetstone, said: "We have got our own slaughterhouse so people know where the meat is coming from. We have got a whole lot busier over the last couple of weeks."
Peter Kendall, director of the National Farmers' Union, has been urging people to buy British, buy local and support UK producers of high-quality meat.
He said consumers had the right to know where their meat comes from and said that by going to butchers they would get fresh, quality produce from a reliable source.
The horse meat scandal was uncovered almost a month ago when traces of horse DNA were found in processed burgers being sold in British supermarkets.
Since then, some European meat processing factories have been found to be using horse meat in products being sent to Britain and, most recently, a slaughterhouse in Yorkshire and a meat firm in Wales have been raided.
Rob Manley, 50, the senior market officer at Leicester market, said: "Our indoor trader butchers have seen an increase in trade since the horse meat scandal. You can see the meat in front of you and you know what you're buying."
Sean Jeynec, of W Archer and Son butchers, in Clarendon Park, Leicester, said: "I would like to hope that this increase in customers will last and people will keep coming back to local butchers they can trust."
