The lack of food scientists and technologists in the food and drink industry is already acknowledged to be one of the biggest issues it faces. But it's one thing to lament the situation and another thing entirely to do something about it.
Fortunately, all is not lost. Fresh work is under way to tackle the problem and one of the core strategies is to make food science courses more practical and link colleges offering them to food businesses.
Early links with the industry are being encouraged by company-sponsored scholarships for students to study food science at university, such as the Northern Foods Foundation for Science and Technology. The scholarship offers bursaries each year to 30 new food science and technology undergraduates at Leeds, Reading and Nottingham universities.
And in September, for example, the University of Wales Institute in Cardiff is launching the UK's first post-graduate conversion course in food science and technology. The course will be open to anyone with a first degree in any science subject and will be subsidised through bursaries funded by the Higher Education Funding Council (HEFC) for Wales. The plan is to roll out similar programmes at universities across the UK and talks are already progressing with the HEFC in England.
People already working in food manufacture are also being given more opportunities to train as food scientists or technologists. Lincoln University's Holbeach campus, for instance, offers a day release course leading to a BSc in food science and manufacture to those already in the industry who have a Higher National Certificate (HNC) or an equivalent qualification.
But student placement schemes are an equally important way to plug the gaps. Several companies have committed to the roll out of such schemes under the Sector Skills Agreement (SSA). Processor Nairns Oatcakes, which has its head office in Edinburgh, Scotland, has just come to the end of one such placement and is extremely positive and enthusiastic about the results.
The student in question was Martha McCullogh, a woman with quite a story to tell. A 36 year-old single mother, with a 16 year-old daughter and 19 year-old son, McCullogh left school with no qualifications. She worked in retail distribution before moving into the catering sector. She secured a job with a nursery, where she was asked to devise a healthy meal plan. But unfortunately, funding for the scheme ran out and her employer had to let her go.
Then, in 2004, McCullogh faced a fresh blow. She fell ill with skin cancer and her battle with the disease forced her to rethink the direction she was taking in her life. She didn't want to go back into catering, but the background in nutrition she gained at the nursery had inspired her to pursue a food science qualification.
On that basis, she took up a HNC in food science and environmental health at Glasgow Metropolitan College. However, she became increasingly interested in food science and went on to take a Higher National Diploma in that area. From there, it was just a short step to a food and consumer science degree at the University of Abertay in Dundee. McCullogh only needed a year's further study to secure that, because of the foundation work she had already done.
This last part of her studies required her to secure a 10-week placement with a food processor, which brings us back to Nairns Oatcakes. Md Mark Laing soon put her to work at the beginning of this year on a project developing an overall measurement of efficiency for the business.
From McCullogh's perspective, says Laing, "she has had first hand experience of the operational and technical side of working with the company, which is invaluable". He continued: "She also had the opportunity to try some of her theoretical ideas and see if they worked in practice."
One of the concerns often raised by food businesses about placement schemes is that they are an extra drain on staff time for whoever has to act as supervisor. But Laing turns this argument on its head by maintaining that students can be set vital tasks no one else has time for. "There are always projects you don't get around to in a business and it's great to have someone coming in with a fresh pair of eyes to work on them. There were a couple of very good ideas she came up with."
Another big demotivator for firms considering a placement is that colleges and universities are often more concerned about the benefits to the student than what's in it for the company. "There's a glass barrier between academic institutions and businesses because they are not always talking the same language or objectives," says Laing. "Companies will tend to view things from a practical point of view and academics [see them] from an academic point of view."
Even if processors are convinced of the value of placement schemes, few colleges, certainly in Scotland, offer them, says Laing. He believes the main reason for this is that the kit needed to train people is expensive, making the courses equally costly. However, he recognises that the industry is attempting to resolve this issue, galvanised by sector skills council Improve.
In fact, McCullogh's placement came about in discussion with Improve. "I'm on the stakeholder group," says Laing. "We were lamenting the lack [of food scientists and technicians] coming through. We identified that the two major reasons for this were the reputation of the food industry, which is not what it could be, and the shortage of worthwhile placements."
Consequently, Laing has pledged to offer one placement per year to food science undergraduates under the SSA. His initial experience has not made him regret his decision. He is adamant that he would recruit McCullogh, were there to be a vacancy for her, and says the scheme would be a great way of sounding out future talent. FM
diary of an apprentice begins in orkney
The roll out of revamped Adult Apprenticeships for the food sector by English and devolved parliaments has even reached the Orkney Islands. In a regular series of columns, Food Manufacture will chart the fortunes of one such trainee as she steers a course through the apprenticeship programme.
Elizabeth Bowen, aged 41, is md of Jolly's Fish & Farm Produce, based in Kirkwall in the Orkneys, and has just started her apprenticeship. Jolly's makes goods ranging from confectionery and cheese to meat and fish products, and supplies local shops, independent retailers further afield and even London's Borough Market. Set up two years ago, the company has sales of £300,000 and 12 staff. Katie Sutherland, who manages the firm's on-site shop, and production manager Martin Peace have also enrolled as Adult Apprentices.
Bowen lives on, and helps to manage, a farm as well as running Jolly's. She has four children, two boys and two girls, ranging from six to 14 years old, and sings in two local choirs.
Her job makes long distance email tutorials an ideal learning format for her apprenticeship. These are assessed by Gordon Gibb, tutor at training agency Polaris Learning, who visits twice a month. "Gordon reviews us as we are working," says Bowen. "We're not sat in a classroom. He assesses how you have applied the lessons to the business. Homework consists of short questions I have to fill in, such as, 'how do you safeguard confidential information?'"
Bowen's apprenticeship focuses on management skills. "Mine has raising food safety awareness, continuous improvement of food safety in manufacture and marketing components," she says.
The current topic is communication, a module Peace and Sutherland are also working through. "It has to be related to what we do, so part of our work before he [Gibb] comes again is to organise a staff meeting."
For further information on Modern Apprenticeships, visit http://www.improveltd.co.uk