Overview
Food factory workers make frozen, tinned, baked, dried and fresh products. Meat process workers produce meat products for the food manufacturing, catering and food retail industries.
Activities
Food factory workers
- Control machinery that processes food
- Make sure there’s a constant supply of ingredients
- Check instruments like temperature gauges
- Report problems with equipment
- Keep machines clean
Meat process workers
- Humanely slaughter and prepare livestock in an abattoir
- Cut, de-bone and prepare carcasses in a meat processing factory
- Prepare meat for retail or catering in meat or poultry processing plants
- Prepare meat for specialist catering orders in butcheries
- Make deliveries
Organisations
Food processing workers are employed by companies that make and package food.
Workplace
Food processing workers usually spend a lot of time working on a factory production line indoors.
Working Hours
Food processing workers usually work between 37 and 40 hours a week. Many factories keep going 24 hours a day so some food processing workers have to work shifts.
Salary
Starting salary is around £16,000.
Qualifications
There are no set qualifications to work as a food factory worker. You may have to take an assessment to check your practical skills before being offered a job. Some employers may ask for GCSE’s, others may be more flexible. It will depend on which industry you are working within.
You could also apply for an apprenticeship. If you have an EHCP you may be able to apply under the DfE exemption which allows the apprentice to use Entry Level 3 English and Maths qualifications. The apprentice would have to be competent enough to successfully achieve all other aspects of the apprenticeship requirements, become occupationally competent and achieve Entry Level 3 in English and Maths before the end of their apprenticeship.