Trip to Thailand reveals a high standard
Leeds Thomas Danby (LTD) College's first visit to Thailand to investigate processing facilities and standards was a resounding success, according to Joe Davidson, programme leader, bakery food manufacture and science.
"I thought I was coming to a third world country, but I think I'm going back to one," said Davidson.
"The standards there are incredible in terms of hygiene, management structures and quality. I think we have a lot to learn from them about the application of quality systems. I was also quite impressed with how they handle staff and talk to them." Their equipment and handskills were equally impressive, he said.
There was a lot of opportunity to exchange new product development ideas with UK businesses, he said. "There is tremendous growth in the Far East. We [in the UK] have products that they don't and they have products we don't. There is a lot of potential for sales growth out there, of course."
LTD has established exchange links with processors and education providers in France, Italy, Holland, Sweden, Finland, Ireland and Russia. Davidson, who has widespread experience in production and technical roles in the food industry, regularly takes students on its BTEC National Diploma in Food Manufacturing Science (Bakery Technology) to these countries.
Excursions to France have looked at sour doughs and long fermentation and Davidson has just returned from an event in Kaliningrad, Russia.
His students are a mix of those new to the industry and those already employed in it, who are in the minority. Many have gone on to work in companies such as Premier Foods and Warburtons.
Participants in the Thailand trip included Debbie Taylor, night shift manager at Cooplands & Son, Scarborough, and Andrea Taylor, a mature student studying level 3 qualifications in food manufacturing technology and craft baking.
The aim of the one-week trip in February was to inform Kasetsart University of LTD's curriculum and the participation of the British government in vocational education. It compared Kasetsart University's Young Entrepreneur Scheme with the product development part of LTD's BTEC course, considered information exchange concerning new product development and quality systems and assessed market opportunities.
