Meet The Man Who Wants You To Eat More Meat

Beneath his colourful personality and world-famous antics that include holding a funeral for a steak, Dario Cecchini is a man who lives and breathes a simple passion: Teaching the world that enjoying quality meat and a deep respect for animals are inseparable.

- ARISTA KWEK

It was his 18th birthday, and he was finally getting to taste a bistecca alla fiorentina. After a whole childhood spent watching his parents wrap up this prime cut of beef for customers, but never enjoying it at home, you could say that it was a dream come true for Dario Cecchini.

Freshly taken off the grill, the steak glistened on his plate, and Cecchini took his long-awaited bite. It was absolutely delicious. “But,” shrugs Cecchini, “not any more delicious than the other ‘unsophisticated’ cuts of meat like offal that my grandmother had cooked for us all along”.

Mad about meat

An eighth-generation butcher in the quiet town of Panzano in Chianti, Italy, Cecchini first exploded into the spotlight in 2001 during the height of the mad cow disease.

The ‘mad butcher’ of Tuscany, known for his charismatic and colourful antics (of which includes dramatically quoting Dante while butchering), had held an elaborate funeral for the Florentine steak when it was publicly banned due to its potential health risks. Much more than a publicity stunt, the funeral was a pure expression of the passion Ceccchini has for serving the world good quality meat.

Hailing from a long line of butchers, Cecchini had originally intended to become a vet, but dropped out of his studies halfway to take over the family butchery from his dying father.

For those wondering how a budding vet — an animal lover — could possibly stand the idea of killing animals for food, Cecchini doesn’t see the paradox in the situation.