The food industry is a valuable industry in the United States for many reasons. Besides the obvious requirement of nourishment and food supply it provides to the country, it is also an important part of the economy. The flexible packaging industry, including food and beverage packaging, directly employs approximately 79,000 people. When you add in food processing equipment positions, the numbers increase significantly, having an even larger economical influence. Even with threats of computerized packaging robots, there is likely to always be a need for food processing equipment positions.
Quality control
Quality control is an extremely important department of many food industry positions. Quality control employees are trained on government food quality and packaging regulations. These regulations are necessary in raising standards of the foods, beverages, and pharmaceuticals that the country consumes. It prevents risk of contamination and problems with unsanitary food distributions.
Many consumers worry about the quality of some suppliers of food and pharmaceuticals. Considering that average production workers in the United States make around $11.95 per hour, consumers are concerned about qualifications and the following of these regulations. For that reason, one of the most important food processing equipment positions is that of quality control. They take the responsibility of adhering to minimum regulations and personally monitoring production worker lines.
Designers
A lot of thought and planning goes into both the products you consume and the shipping containers of those items. Flexible packaging is the current most common type of container, because of its ability to safely store and transport liquid beverages and pharmaceuticals. Flexible packaging is currently the second largest packaging segment in the U.S., garnering about 18% of the U.S. $145 billion packaging market. Many food processing equipment positions also include the responsibility of designing and testing flexible packaging options.
Mechanical and IT positions
Even production and food service line industries require both mechanical and IT position workers. Mechanics are necessary in identifying and correcting line and mechanical problems. These types of problems are common in production assembly lines. Mechanics may also be tasked with repair of food processing equipment. The equipment is very large and specially designed for specific food processing tasks, often requiring specialized mechanical skills.
IT, or informational technology professionals also play an important role in the industry. Without IT, production lines would be easy to hack into and difficult to duplicate. The IT department is usually full of cybersecurity professionals with extensive backgrounds in information technology security. Any time that artificial intelligence is used, an IT professional is nearby for any technological problems. IT professionals may be harder to recruit and many food supplier and pharmaceutical line industries use the services of a professional cybersecurity recruiter.
Supervisory positions
Just as with any other industry, there is a strong need for supervisory positions. These are the people who will monitor line workers and ensure that everyone is working together properly. They might include human resource professionals, chief executive officers, or directors of different departments. These positions are also important in maintain morale among workers in different environments. They also may be involved in the hiring and firing decisions of their department. Supervisory positions also tend to be filled by executive recruiters, people with more skills and resources to higher level employees.
The food, beverage, and pharmaceutical industry is an expanding business. It continues to grow and profit. There are so many aspects of the industry that it will always be relevant, even when, and if, machines take over line positions. All of the listed positions are relevant and all are extremely crucial in a successful food processing and equipment industry.
