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Food manufacturing workers

How to become a Canned and Retort Food Maker

Also called: Canned food cook, Canned food sterilising worker, Canned food filler, Can sealer, Bottled food worker, Retort food production worker, Canned food equipment operator, Preserved food equipment operator

Makes canned, bottled and retort-pouch foods.

Main tasks

Workers in this job say high school or university is common. From job tag's survey of people in each job, who could give several answers. It shows what workers see as common, not how many workers hold each level.

How to become one

No particular education or qualifications are needed to start. People join a food company, such as a pickle maker, after leaving school. Related courses include agriculture, food and nutrition. New graduates usually find jobs through their school, and people changing careers mostly through Hello Work (public employment service) and job advertisements. In this work it is important to fully understand the safety and quality of the food being made. When handling machines such as container sealers and heat sterilisers, you also need the skills and knowledge to run them. These can be learned through school and experience at work, and also through courses run by the Japan Canners Association under its chief technician certification scheme, covering sterilisation control, seaming control, quality control and HACCP (Hazard Analysis Critical Control Point) management. Those who take a course and pass the exam are awarded the qualification.

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Questions people ask

How do I become a Canned and Retort Food Maker?

No particular education or qualifications are needed to start. People join a food company, such as a pickle maker, after leaving school. Related courses include agriculture, food and nutrition. New graduates usually find jobs through their school, and people changing careers mostly through Hello Work (public employment service) and job advertisements. In this work it is important to fully understand the safety and quality of the food being made. When handling machines such as container sealers and heat sterilisers, you also need the skills and knowledge to run them. These can be learned through school and experience at work, and also through courses run by the Japan Canners Association under its chief technician certification scheme, covering sterilisation control, seaming control, quality control and HACCP (Hazard Analysis Critical Control Point) management. Those who take a course and pass the exam are awarded the qualification.

How much does a Canned and Retort Food Maker earn in Japan?

Average annual income in the private sector, bonus included, is ¥3,967,400 (Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare). The figure is for the wage survey group Food, beverage and tobacco production workers, which covers several jobs.

Do you need a degree to become a Canned and Retort Food Maker?

Usually not. In this job's census occupation group, only 13% of workers are university graduates.

Will AI change the work of a Canned and Retort Food Maker?

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

Sources

独立行政法人労働政策研究・研修機構（JILPT）作成 職業情報データベース 解説系ダウンロードデータ（IPD_DL_description_7_01.xlsx）ver.7.01 職業情報提供サイト（job tag）より2026年10月4日にダウンロード（https://shigoto.mhlw.go.jp/User/download）を加工して作成

独立行政法人労働政策研究・研修機構（JILPT）作成 職業情報データベース 簡易版数値系ダウンロードデータ（IPD_DL_numeric_7_00.xlsx）ver.7.00 職業情報提供サイト（job tag）より2026年10月4日にダウンロード（https://shigoto.mhlw.go.jp/User/download）を加工して作成

Sources: JILPT Occupational Information Database download data via job tag (解説系 ver.7.01 and 簡易版数値系 ver.7.00, downloaded 4 October 2026), processed by Peernovo; MHLW, Basic Survey on Wage Structure 2025; Statistics Bureau of Japan, 2020 Population Census; MEXT, School Basic Survey 2025; MHLW, Employment Referrals for General Workers (Hello Work statistics). Figures processed by Peernovo. English job names, translations and the matching of jobs to statistical groups, schools and degree fields by Peernovo.

Updated 4 October 2026