The series is hosted by Colby Donaldson, with a three-judge panel consisting of David Budworth, Roxanne Spruance, and Michael Sullivan, experts in the practice of butchering.
The set, referred to as "The Shop," consists of a large workroom equipped with a range of hand and power tools for preparing meat, including saws, slicers, grinders, sausage stuffers, and one bandsaw that must be shared among the contestants.
In the first round of a typical episode, the four butchers are each presented with a whole animal carcass, suspended from overhead hooks in the meat locker.
They have a set amount of time to accomplish two tasks: First, they must break the carcass down into large primal cuts without taking it down from the hooks.
[note 1] For the second round, the three remaining butchers are each given a supply of meat and must prepare a set number of items that meet a specific weight/size/thickness target.
For the third round of a different episode, the butchers were each given three small carcasses instead of a single large one - a python, iguana, and nutria - and had to skin and prepare cuts from all of them within the time limit.
Budworth has worked at various chef and butcher positions for many years before starting his own company producing meat products.
[1] An on-screen announcement at the start of each episode states that all meat used in the competition is donated to animal rescue shelters afterward.