Food Processing Industry
The fast paced life of today has ushered in the era of convenience food or more popularly the fast food culture in our country. On one hand this has led to the growing demand for packed and processed food and on the other it has made the consumer more quality and nutrition conscious. All these factors pose a very encouraging picture on the future of Food Processing Industry in India. The FPI encompasses basic foods like wheat and rice products and the processes for converting them into edible form; as well as the processed foods such as bakery & confectionery products, dairy products, meat & fish products, fruit & vegetable products and all such products which are processed and packaged to enhance and prolong the edible life.
The food processing industry employs many different types of workers. Most of them are production workers like slaughterers and meatpackers, poultry trimmers and cutters, bakers, cannery workers and food batchmakers etc. The increasing automation in the industry has also led to a growing demand for workers to operate machines like dairy processing equipment operators, mixing and blending machine operators, bottle packers and fillers etc. Other than these mechanics in specialized trades are required for maintenance for air-conditioning and refrigeration.
The food processing industry also has attractive openings at the managerial levels for professionals from varied fields. For example Industrial Production Managers are required to control the operation of the manufacturing plants. Marketing and Sales personnel are required for sales promotion and marketing. Food technologists work in research laboratories or on production lines to develop new products, test current ones, and control food quality.
Educational Qualification:
Food Processing Industry is a growing industry with good job prospects. Some universities in India offer degree courses in food technology and food science. There are also institutes offering postgraduate courses in specialized aspects of food processing. Admission for under graduate courses in food technology, food science and home science is open for candidates with PCM or PCB at 10+2 level. For admission in M.Sc/Management eligibility criterion is B.Sc.
