Dairy products maker to dairy processing operator
A dairy products maker already meets 29% of what the dairy processing operator role asks for. The move turns on 21 required skills not yet in the profile.
75.7/ 100
1 How much of what a dairy processing operator is expected to do is already part of a dairy products maker’s work. Directional: the figure for the reverse move differs, because moving into a speciality is not the same problem as moving out of one. 2 Every skill the dairy processing operator role is recorded as needing, required and optional together. What these numbers mean.
Why this move works
A dairy processing operator role treats 6 of its required skills as things a dairy products maker already does. You would walk in with these on day one.
- apply requirements concerning manufacturing of food and beverages
- clean food and beverage machinery
- dairy manufacturing specifications
- follow hygienic procedures during food processing
- food safety principles
- tend dairy processing machines
What stands in the way is 21 required skills the profile does not yet cover. Table 3 groups them; Table 4 says which to take first.
Table 2 · What you already bring
Of the 19 skills that carry over, these are the ones fewest other occupations ask for. A dairy processing operator role needs them, and most people applying for one will not have them already. This is the part of a dairy products maker background worth leading with.
- already held tend dairy processing machines working with machinery and specialised equipment
- already held perform curd processing of cheese handling and moving
- already held curdling of cheese engineering, manufacturing and construction
- already held ripening of cheese engineering, manufacturing and construction
- already held dairy manufacturing specifications engineering, manufacturing and construction
- already held administer lactic ferment cultures to manufacturing products handling and moving
All 19 carried skills, including the 6 the dairy processing operator role treats as required.
Table 3 · What you may need to learn
The 35 missing skills fall into 10 areas of the ESCO skill hierarchy, numbered in the order worth working in. Areas carrying the most required skills come first, and inside each one the required skills sit above the optional ones. Nothing here is a verdict on you: it is a list of what this particular job asks for that your current one does not.
- still to learn conduct cleaning in place required
- still to learn ensure sanitation required
- still to learn maintain tanks required
- still to learn perform cleaning duties required
- still to learn secure goods required
- optional, not held label samples optional
- optional, not held lift heavy weights optional
- still to learn apply GMP required
- still to learn adhere to organisational guidelines required
- still to learn apply HACCP required
- still to learn comply with legislation related to health care required
- optional, not held ensure compliance with environmental legislation in food production optional
- optional, not held operate a heat treatment process optional
- still to learn disassemble equipment required
- still to learn operate automated process control required
- still to learn pump products required
- optional, not held apply extruding techniques optional
- optional, not held operate centrifuges optional
- optional, not held operate equipment for food homogenisation optional
- optional, not held set up equipment for food production optional
- optional, not held tend milk filling machines optional
- still to learn work in a food processing team required
- still to learn follow verbal instructions required
- still to learn follow written instructions required
- still to learn monitor milk production deviations required
- still to learn use dairy test materials required
- still to learn be at ease in unsafe environments required
- still to learn follow production schedule required
4 further areas in the appendix
Table 4 · Where to start
The 3 entries a dairy processing operator role is least likely to hire without. The ordering is computed from the skill data, not from what pays.
Each entry opens a course search for that skill. Career Overlap earns nothing from these links.
Appendix · The rest of the record
All 19 skills that carry over
- already held apply requirements concerning manufacturing of food and beverages skill
- already held clean food and beverage machinery skill
- already held dairy manufacturing specifications knowledge
- already held follow hygienic procedures during food processing skill
- already held food safety principles knowledge
- already held tend dairy processing machines skill
- already held administer ingredients in food production skill
- already held administer lactic ferment cultures to manufacturing products skill
- already held analyse characteristics of food products at reception skill
- already held collect samples for analysis skill
- already held curdling of cheese knowledge
- already held dispose food waste skill
- already held execute chilling processes to food products skill
- already held fermentation processes of food knowledge
- already held legislation about animal origin products knowledge
- already held microbiology of fresh milk knowledge
- already held operate pasteurisation processes skill
- already held perform curd processing of cheese skill
- already held ripening of cheese knowledge
The 4 learning areas not shown above
- still to learn food storage required
- optional, not held manufacturing process of ice cream optional
- optional, not held ultra-high temperature processing optional
- still to learn carry out checks of production plant equipment required
- optional, not held keep machines oiled for steady functioning optional
- optional, not held temperature scales optional
- optional, not held health, safety and hygiene legislation optional
14 supplementary skills, helpful but not required
- optional, not held apply extruding techniques optional
- optional, not held ensure compliance with environmental legislation in food production optional
- optional, not held keep machines oiled for steady functioning optional
- optional, not held label samples optional
- optional, not held manufacturing process of ice cream optional
- optional, not held operate a heat treatment process optional
- optional, not held operate centrifuges optional
- optional, not held operate equipment for food homogenisation optional
- optional, not held set up equipment for food production optional
- optional, not held tend milk filling machines optional
- optional, not held ultra-high temperature processing optional
- optional, not held health, safety and hygiene legislation optional
- optional, not held lift heavy weights optional
- optional, not held temperature scales optional
9 held skills the dairy processing operator role does not ask for
- not needed by the target role carry out cheese production skill
- not needed by the target role check bottles for packaging skill
- not needed by the target role comply with food safety and hygiene skill
- not needed by the target role dairy products knowledge
- not needed by the target role food labels knowledge
- not needed by the target role label foodstuffs skill
- not needed by the target role perform sensory evaluation of food products skill
- not needed by the target role select adequate packaging for food products skill
- not needed by the target role variety of cheese knowledge
5 gaps that are knowledge rather than practice
Knowledge gaps usually close through study. Practical skill gaps usually need something you can point at.
- still to learn food storage required
- optional, not held manufacturing process of ice cream optional
- optional, not held ultra-high temperature processing optional
- optional, not held health, safety and hygiene legislation optional
- optional, not held temperature scales optional
Common questions about this move
Can a dairy products maker become a dairy processing operator?
Yes, and it is a career change move. A dairy products maker already covers 29% of what a dairy processing operator is expected to do: 19 skills carry over, 6 of which the dairy processing operator role treats as required.
What skills does a dairy products maker need to become a dairy processing operator?
21 required skills are missing, plus 14 optional ones. They fall into 10 areas of the ESCO skill hierarchy, led by handling and moving. The single most important is apply GMP.
How hard is the move from dairy products maker to dairy processing operator?
Its learning distance is 75.7 out of 100, which is the career change band. That accounts for both how much is missing and how specialised those skills are.
How this record was compiled
Both occupations are taken from ESCO, which lists the skills and knowledge each occupation is expected to have and marks every one required or optional. Nothing here is a prediction about hiring, and nothing here knows that a particular employer wants a particular certificate. Treat Table 3 as a starting point for your own research rather than a syllabus. The full method states what these figures can and cannot tell you.