Professional Work Habits of a Food Processing Worker

As a food processing worker, you will be working in a team environment to:

1. produce outputs that meet industry standards;
2. meet production targets; and
3. ensure outputs are produced on schedule.

The Food Processing Plant

The Food Processing Facility

A food processing facility is a facility where food for human consumption is:

 manufactured;
 packaged;
 labeled; and
 stored

EQUIPMENT
In food processing, equipment refers to a set of mechanical tools designed to
achieve a particular objective. In this topic, you will encounter food processing
equipment in accordance with industry standards.

1. Oven – a thermally insulated chamber used for baking, heating or drying

2. Bottle capper – used to seal bottles during bottling. It uses pressure to push cap
down the bottle.

3. Burner stove – a kitchen equipment for cooking or heating that operates by

burning fuel or using electricity.

4. Cabinet dryer – an equipment used to remove moisture in food by distributing

heated air in a circular motion.

5. Can sealer – a machine used to seal the lid to the can body.

6. Fermentation vat – container for storing liquids for fermentation. It prevents

bacteria or other microorganism from entering, hence protecting the liquid.

7. Food processor – used to chop, dice, and slice, allowing for quicker meal
preparation
8. Frying vat – a kitchen appliance designed to heat large quantities of cooking oil
for deep frying large quantities of foods.

9. Impulse sealer – a machine used to seal products, packaging, and other

thermoplastic materials using heat. It seals two layers of plastic together by
applying heat.

10. Jack lift – sometimes referred to as jackscrew. It is a mechanical device

used to lift and move across heavy loads of supply.

11. Meat grinder – used for mincing and/or mixing raw or cooked meat; it also
called a slicing machine. It used to slice meats, sausages, cheeses, and other
deli products.

12. Refrigerator – used for storing foods to prolong their freshness. Usually
has a freezer compartment. Foods stored in the freezer stays fresh longer
because microorganisms in the food reproduce slowly as the food reaches
temperatures below 10 degrees Celsius.
13. Sausage stuffer – a hand-pressed equipment used to force sausage into
a casing.
14. Sterilizer – a machine or piece of equipment that you use to make objects
or substances completely clen and free from bacteria.
15. Chest Freezer - Freezers can reduce the temperature of objects within
the range -1 to -13 degrees Celsius. Only food intended for freezing can be
placed inside the freezer.

16. Chiller - Chillers are used to lower the temperature of liquids within the
range 2 to 7 degrees Celsius.

17. Juice Extractor – squeezes out the juice from fresh vegetables and fruits

18. Meat Slicer – also called a slicing machine. It is used to slice meats,
sausages, cheeses, and other deli products.

19. Mixer – a machine used for mixing ingredients. Often used in baking.

20. Pressure Cooker - sealed pot with a valve that controls the steam
pressure inside to cook food faster and make the meat tender
 21. Pressure Canner – has a dial that indicates the pressure inside the
canner and a weighted gauge that allows steam to come in and out. It works by
trapping steam and building up pressure inside the pot.

22. Smokehouse– an equipment used to cure meat or fish with smoke

23. Boiler – It is used to contain a liquid for pasteurization. A modern version

such as the steam jacketed kettle boils liquid through steam. It is enclosed by a
‘jacket’ to ensure even heating.

24. Steamer – used to cook or prepare various foods with steam heat by
means of holding the food in a closed vessel, reducing steam escape. Food is
placed at the top, over boiling water that produces hot moist air.

25. Sterilizer – equipment used to destroy microorganisms by bringing to a

high temperature with steam, dry heat, or boiling liquid

26. Trolleys – a small vehicle with wheels that can carry things. Used for
transporting heavy loads.

27. Vacuum Packaging Machine – a machine that removes air from the
package prior to sealing.

28. Hot Water Bath Canner - a large kettle used for water bath. It has racks
for glass jars to sit on whilst submerged in water and boiled to 100 C.

29. Silent cutter – used to chop and mix meat as well as cut into identical
sizes to make sausages.

TOOLS/UTENSILS

Tools are handheld devices used to carry out particular functions. Utensils are tools,
containers, or other articles specifically used for household tasks like cooking.

 Bowl – a round dish used to prepare and serve food. It can be made of different
materials such as aluminum, enamel, glass, stainless steel, or stoneware.

 Casserole – a large, deep dish used both in the oven and as a serving vessel

 Enamel Kettle - is a type of pot, specialized for boiling water, with a lid, spout,
and handle
  Food Tray - flat dish or container that's used to carry or serve food. It can also
be used for storing or displaying.

 Jars – a glass container ideal for packaging fermented and sugar concentrated
products

 Mixing Bowl – a stainless steel bowl used for mixing ingredients together in.

 Non-Stick Pan – cooking pans that have non-stick properties. They do not
require any amount of oil and work well with food that generally sticks.

 Perforated Tray – a pan that has holes in the bottom. It allows steam and/or oil
to escape the food.

 Saucepan – a deep cooking pan, typically round, made of metal, and with one
long handle and a lid used for general range-top cooking

 Soaking Container – used for containing curing or brining solutions along with
the meat, fruit, or vegetable

 Utility Tray – designed for carrying items, it can be utilized for a number of
functions. A utility tray can be used when mixing liquids or transferring products
from one container to another. It can hold product to avoid spills.

 Wire Basket –it is a metal container used to sort and store items in the food
processing plant.

HAND TOOLS

 Basting Spoons – used to scoop liquid at the bottom of the pan and pour it into
the foodstuff being cooked

 Can Opener – a mechanical device used to open tin can

 Colander – a bowl-shaped strainer, it is usually made of metal that has holes

through which liquid can drain. It is typically used to drain boiled foods such as
pasta and potatoes. It can also be used in rinsing fruits and vegetables.

 Cook’s Fork – heavy, two-pronged fork with a long handle. Used for lifting and
turning meat or another foodstuff.

 Fish Descaler – a small hand tool used to remove the scales attached to the
skin of fish with ease

 Food Tongs – spring-type tools used to grip and lift foodstuff.

  Funnel – a tube or pipe, wide at the top and narrow at the bottom. It is used for
guiding liquid or powder into a small opening.

 Jar Lifter – works like a tong, is used to grip and lift jars with hot contents

 Squeezer – a hand-pressed tool used for squeezing juice from fruit.

 Mandoline – has a flat surface with a razor-sharp blade that can be adjusted to
cut thick or thin slices.

 Strainer – a handheld tool used to strain food

 Syringe – a tube with a needle and pump used to inject curing solution into meat

 Wooden Ladle – a long-handled spoon with a cup-shaped bowl made of wood. It

can be used for lifting liquid out of a pot.

 Wooden Spoon – a spoon that can be for stirring sauces, mixing ingredients, or
cooking. It is preferred over metal spoons because it does not transfer heat.

CUTTING TOOLS

 Boning Knife – used for boning raw meat and poultry. A flexible boning knife is
used for filleting and light cutting. It is thin and pointed usually about 6 inches
long.

 Bread Knife – used for slicing bread, cake, pastry

 Chef’s Knife – most used knife in the kitchen for chopping, slicing, dicing, etc.
The blade is wider nearing the handle and tapers until it reaches the sharp point.

 Chopping Board – where food items to be sliced or chopped are placed

 Cleaver – used to hack and cut through bones. It is a very heavy and broad
knife.

 Honing Rod – used to realign the knife’s edges quickly.

 Sharpening Steel / Stone – same as honing rod

  Paring Knife – This is a small and pointed knife around 2 to 4 inches long. This
is used for trimming and paring vegetables and fruits.

 Peeler – used for peeling vegetables and fruits with a revolving blade
mechanism

 Utility Knife – used for cutting and preparing fruits, as well as carving roast
chicken and duck. It is a narrow knife about 6 inches in length.

APPARATUS/INSTRUMENT

Apparatus refers to a special set of tools often used in the laboratory. But they remain
useful in food processing.

 Measuring glass – used to measure liquid ingredients.

 Measuring cups – used to measure dry ingredients such as sugar and flour.
Each cup in the set measures a specific amount as indicated on its handle.

 Measuring spoons – used to measure small amounts of ingredients. Each

spoon in the set measures a specific amount as indicated on its handle.

 Moisture Analyzer – used to determine moisture content of a sample by

determining the weight loss of that sample after heating. This will be very helpful
in monitoring water content of the food that you process.

 pH meter – an instrument used to measure acidity or alkalinity.

 Refractometer – used to measure sugar concentration when processing jams,

jellies, preserves, and marmalades. For starters, you will most likely encounter
this when making solutions with water and sugar.

 Salinometer – an instrument for measuring the salinity of a solution. It has

various types: digital, digital handheld pocket, pen-type, and combination.

 Hydrometer – used to measure relative density of liquids based on the concept

of buoyancy

 Water Activity Meter – used to measure water activity by allowing free water
from food sample to escape to the meter chamber.

 Thermometer – measures temperature of food, has many types including meat

and digital thermometer.
 Meat Thermometer – used to measure internal temperature of meat. Depending
on manufacturer specifications, some meat thermometers can be left during
cooking for monitoring of temperature.

 Digital Thermometer – also used to measure the temperature of food, it gives

digital reading of the temperature.

 Timer – usually comes in an hour range, it will help you perform different tasks at
the same time.

 Weighing scale – Most recipe ingredients are measured by weight so accurate

scales are very important. Portion scales are used for measuring ingredients as
well as for portioning products for service. YOU USE TO MAKE OBJECTS OR
SUBSTANCES COMPLETELY CLEAN and free from bacteria