When milk is hauled in a refrigerated tanker to the creamery, that facility may service over a dozen counties, processing tens of thousands of gallons of milk a day. Before the milk is pumped into the creamery, a technician tests the milk to ensure it is safe. The milk moves through processes that are monitored and tested by employees who hold food quality assurance jobs. After the milk passes quality assurance (QA) testing, it is bottled and shipped to supermarkets and stores up to several hundred miles away, all while in a controlled, refrigerated environment. The people responsible for ensuring the quality of the processes and temperatures as well as testing for contamination work in food quality assurance jobs.
Beef and the Need for Quality Assurance
Beef processing has become centralized to large meat processing plants. Cattle are shipped to the processing plants from several states, usually by truck or by rail car. After an employee who holds one of the many food quality assurance jobs inspects the cattle, the cattle move into the processing center, where they are slaughtered; the beef is then cut into steaks, ribs, roasts, hamburger and other meat products. At every step of the process, samples of the product are tested and measured by employees who have one of the many food quality assurance jobs in the plant. As an example, the hamburger from one processing center could be shipped to all 50 states as well as exported to other countries. Famous failures resulting in E-coli contamination have already resulted in nationwide meat recalls.
Food Quality Assurance Positions
There are several titles for food quality assurance jobs. People who graduate with a degree in food sciences or engineering generally hold these positions. Technicians may not have a bachelor's degree. With the increased complexity of measuring and inspecting processes, most employees in quality assurance have at least two years of post high school training. The need for process standards for exporting food to foreign countries has increased the rigor of process control, as well as has helped the acceptance of other manufacturing process techniques such as the Six Sigma Black Belt process and other quality certifications.
Process Control
A new class of food quality assurance jobs is emerging. As food-processing plants become larger and the number of facilities decreases, many plants are implementing process-engineering positions that in the past would have been in factory environments. Six Sigma Black Belt Process Engineers are now more commonly found in food processing plants.
Job Requirements
Manufacturing/process/project engineers usually hold bachelor's or master's degrees in engineering or food sciences. They may have other technical degrees or certifications as well. They have an excellent understanding of statistics and process control. They must have a complete understanding of the day-to-day operations of the plant, as well as what constitute the most likely areas in which process failures might occur, and how to prevent them. They also have a general understanding of the business environment and have undergone supervisory training.
Salaries
In 2007, according to the American Society of Quality salary survey, the average salary for a manufacturing/process/project engineer was about $83,000.
A quality process analyst takes samples of a product — like milk — and tests the product for the presence of contaminants, including bacteria, chemicals, and antibiotics. The quality process analyst also is responsible for ensuring that all processing is conducted at the proper temperatures, that all maintenance schedules are strictly followed, and that sterile conditions are achieved and maintained. The quality process analyst usually reports to a quality assurance manager.
Job Requirements
The quality process analyst also must possess excellent communication skills, as well as an understanding of the processes of the plant. If a problem is found that causes a food lot to be rejected, the quality process analyst must understand not only that defect, but be able to work with other technicians to trace the source of the problem. The quality process analyst needs to understand documentation requirements for appropriately handling customer complaints and legal or government actions. If contaminated lots are shipped from the plant, then the quality process analyst needs to know the county, state, and federal processes to alert customers of food-borne contamination. In 2007, according to the American Society of Quality salary survey, the average salary for a food quality process analyst was about $64,000.
Quality Assurance Technicians
Another section of employees who work in food quality assurance jobs include the technicians who work in the lab to monitor, measure and write reports on the results of the tests. Technicians may not have a bachelor's degree, but most will have a two-year food services degree.
The microbiology lab technician is the person who will take the samples from the quality process analyst and run the microbiology analyses. A technician may have a bachelor's degree or a two-year degree in microbiology or food sciences. The microbiology lab technician handles the daily actions in the microbiology lab. Because the main task of the microbiology lab technician is to measure bacterial or viral contamination, the technician must understand how to apply sterile techniques. To create a report, the technician must also understand mathematics and statistics, as well as understand accurate documentation of data from the results.
The chemistry lab technician will take other samples from the quality process analyst and run chemical analyses on food in the lab. The chemistry lab technician may have a bachelor's degree in chemistry or biochemistry, or a two-year degree in food sciences. The chemistry lab technician conducts a variety of analyses, including calorie content, fat content, protein content, as well as other nutritional measures. The chemistry lab technician will also run inspections of the food for any contaminations or deviations from established standards in the quantities of ingredients used in the process. The inspection lab technician is responsible for the sanitary handling of food samples and keeping accurate records; he or she must possess a strong aptitude for mathematics.
Conclusion
The variety and types of food quality assurance jobs is expanding as the complexity of processing food increases. With stringent foreign and domestic regulation and concern for the quality of the food supply, these positions will continue to be in demand.
