Grain and Oil Processing Workers

How to become a Rice Mill Operator

Official Chinese title (2022 occupational classification): 制米工

Operates grain processing machinery to turn paddy rice and other raw grain into milled rice.

Main tasks

Operating cleaning, weighing and conveying equipment to receive and clean raw grain
Operating huskers and paddy separators to remove husks and separate brown rice
Operating whitening, polishing, colour sorting and blending equipment to refine brown rice
Operating weighing, bagging and sealing equipment to weigh and pack finished rice
Handling and recovering by products and waste from production
Operating air systems for ventilation and dust removal
Operating central control systems to monitor production
Servicing equipment, fixing faults and keeping production records

Ways in

Vocational majors: Higher vocational college (高职专科) major: Grain Engineering Technology and Management (490301). Vocational major 490301 Grain Engineering Technology and Management (粮食工程技术与管理), 3 years. The Ministry of Education's 2022 major profiles list this occupation among those the major prepares students for (职业面向). Example certificates: Food Inspection Management; Grain and Agricultural Food Safety Assessment.; Secondary vocational school (中职) major: Grain, Oil and Feed Processing Technology (690301). Vocational major 690301 Grain, Oil and Feed Processing Technology (粮油和饲料加工技术), 3 years. The Ministry of Education's 2022 major profiles list this occupation among those the major prepares students for (职业面向). Example certificates: Grain and Agricultural Food Safety Assessment.; Vocational bachelor (职业本科) major: Modern Grain Engineering Technology (290301). Vocational major 290301 Modern Grain Engineering Technology (现代粮食工程技术), 4 years. The Ministry of Education's 2022 major profiles list this occupation among those the major prepares students for (职业面向).

Pay · AI and this job

Median pay in China: CN¥54,000 a year (2025).
Middle half: CN¥43,000 to CN¥69,400. One in ten earn less than CN¥33,600 and one in ten more than CN¥86,600.
This is the figure for the mid group Agricultural Products Processing Workers, not for this job alone.
National figure: wage prices of enterprise employees from the Ministry of Human Resources and Social Security (MOHRSS) enterprise pay survey. The public sector and the self-employed are not covered.
Guangzhou only: median CN¥61,200 a year (2025), middle half CN¥44,600 to CN¥84,337.
This is the figure for the mid group Agricultural Products Processing Workers, not for this job alone.
Generative AI can do relatively little of this work, by the ILO's global estimate.

Who does this work

The census group Agricultural Products Processing Workers holds 0.39% of everyone employed in China; 45.2% of its workers are women (2020 Census).
21.2% are under 35, 56.7% are 35 to 54 and 22.1% are 55 or older. The middle age band is 45 to 49.
Census figures for the whole mid group (2020 long-form sample), not for this job alone.

Questions people ask

How do I become a Rice Mill Operator?

Ways in include: Higher vocational college (高职专科) major: Grain Engineering Technology and Management (490301); Secondary vocational school (中职) major: Grain, Oil and Feed Processing Technology (690301).

How much does a Rice Mill Operator earn in China?

Across China, the median pay of enterprise employees is CN¥54,000 a year (Ministry of Human Resources and Social Security (MOHRSS), 2025). The public sector and the self-employed are not covered. It is the figure for the mid group Agricultural Products Processing Workers. In Guangzhou alone it is CN¥61,200 a year (2025).

Will AI change the work of a Rice Mill Operator?

Generative AI can do relatively little of this work, by the ILO's global estimate.

Sources

Ministry of Human Resources and Social Security (MOHRSS): 2025 enterprise pay survey information: wage prices of enterprise employees by occupation mid group, and digital occupations (P10 to P90 annual CNY) (2025 (published 2026-07-08)), retrieved 5 October 2026
Guangzhou Human Resources and Social Security Bureau: Guangzhou 2025 labour market wage prices (P10 to P90 annual CNY by occupation) (2025 (enterprise pay survey)), retrieved 4 October 2026
National Bureau of Statistics of China: China Population Census Yearbook 2020, long-form tables 4-6 and 4-7 (employed by occupation mid group, sex, age) (2020 Census long form (10% sample)), retrieved 4 October 2026
International Labour Organization, Generative AI and Jobs: A Refined Global Index of Occupational Exposure (ILO Working Paper 140, Gmyrek et al.) (ILO Working Paper 140, May 2025, Annex Table A1), CC BY 4.0, retrieved 4 October 2026

Sources: Occupational Classification of the People's Republic of China (2022 edition, public consultation draft), Ministry of Human Resources and Social Security, State Administration for Market Regulation and National Bureau of Statistics; Ministry of Human Resources and Social Security, 2025 enterprise pay survey information; Guangzhou Human Resources and Social Security Bureau, 2025 labour market wage prices; National Bureau of Statistics of China (www.stats.gov.cn), 2020 Population Census yearbook; Ministry of Education, vocational education major profiles (2022 revision) and undergraduate major catalogue (2025); Ministry of Human Resources and Social Security, national vocational qualifications catalogue (2021); O*NET interest scores (CC BY 4.0); ILO global generative AI exposure index (CC BY 4.0). Figures processed by Peernovo. English text, translations and the matching of occupations to ISCO-08, majors, degree fields and qualifications by Peernovo.

Descriptions and tasks are Peernovo's own words, written from the facts in the Occupational Classification of the People's Republic of China (2022 edition). Job titles and work types are the classification's own.

Updated 5 October 2026