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# Butcher Trade

## Definition

The commercial activity of slaughtering and selling meat, which Smith identifies as a brutal and odious business that nonetheless offers higher profits than most common trades due to its disagreeable nature.

## Source Chapter

Book I, Chapter 10

## Context

Smith uses the butcher trade as an example of how disagreeable employment affects profits of stock as well as wages of labour. This illustrates his principle that the unattractiveness of certain businesses to potential entrants allows those who do engage in them to earn above-normal returns.

## Economic Domain

Distribution

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