How to become a food, drink and tobacco process operative
Official title: Food, drink and tobacco process operatives
Also called: Food mixer, Food worker, Tobacco dryer, Tobacco cutter, Food operative, Line operative, Food processor, Process worker, Tobacco worker, Bakery operative, Process operator, Tobacco layer-out
Food, drink and tobacco process operatives set, operate and attend machinery to bake, freeze, heat, crush, mix, blend and otherwise process foodstuffs, beverages and tobacco leaves.
Main tasks
- Sets, operates and attends machinery and ovens to mix, bake and otherwise prepare bread and flour confectionery products
- Operates machinery to crush, mix, malt, cook and ferment grains and fruits to produce beer, wines, malt liquors, vinegar, yeast and related products
- Attends equipment to make jam, toffee, cheese, processed cheese, margarine, syrup, ice, pasta, ice-cream, sausages, chocolate, maize starch, edible fats and dextrin
- Operates equipment to cool, heat, dry, roast, blanch, pasteurise, smoke, sterilise, freeze, evaporate and concentrate foodstuffs and liquids used in food processing
- Mixes, pulps, grinds, blends and separates foodstuffs and liquids with churning, pressing, sieving, grinding and filtering equipment
- Processes tobacco leaves by hand or machine to make cigarettes, cigars, pipe and other tobacco products
How to become one
There are no formal academic entry requirements, though some GCSEs/S grades can be an advantage. Off and on-the-job training is available. Vocational qualifications related to food and drink manufacturing, including apprenticeships, are available at up to level 3.
Ways in
- Apprenticeship (England): Brewer (level 4). England. Typically 18 months. Skills England standard ST0580.
- Apprenticeship (England): Food and drink process operator (level 2). England. Typically 12 months. Skills England standard ST0199.
- Apprenticeship (England): Food and drink technical operator (level 3). England. Typically 30 months. Skills England standard ST0196.
Pay · Outlook
- Median full-time pay: £28,243 a year The middle half earn £24,471 to £33,889.
- About 188,900 people work in this job now, and about 185,900 are projected by 2035. (-1.6%)
Related jobs
- Textile process operatives
- Chemical and related process operatives
- Plastics process operatives
- Metal making and treating process operatives
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Questions people ask
How do I become a food, drink and tobacco process operative?
There are no formal academic entry requirements, though some GCSEs/S grades can be an advantage. Off and on-the-job training is available. Vocational qualifications related to food and drink manufacturing, including apprenticeships, are available at up to level 3.
How much does a food, drink and tobacco process operative earn in the UK?
Median full-time pay is £28,243 a year (Office for National Statistics). The middle half earn £24,471 to £33,889.
Is a food, drink and tobacco process operative a growing career in the UK?
Employment is projected to stay about the same by 2035: about 188,900 people now and 185,900 later (Department for Education).
Do you need a degree to become a food, drink and tobacco process operative?
Usually not. Only 20% of people in this job hold a bachelor's degree or higher. Ways in include: Brewer (level 4).
Sources
- Office for National Statistics: Annual Population Survey: employment by occupation (April 2025 to March 2026), OGL v3.0, retrieved 2026-10-03
- Office for National Statistics: SOC 2020 Volume 1: structure and descriptions (2026-08-27 edition), OGL v3.0, retrieved 2026-10-03
- Department for Education: Skills Imperative 2035: employment projections by occupation (2021 to 2035 (Warwick IER / Cambridge Econometrics)), OGL v3.0, retrieved 2026-10-03
- Office for National Statistics: Annual Survey of Hours and Earnings, Table 14 (2025 provisional), OGL v3.0, retrieved 2026-10-03
Updated 2026-10-03