Posted By GavinR Hi Guys, Was wondering if anyone out there would give me their opinion on what criteria they would expect to see to be successful or even considered for a position as a H&S advisor or manager within food manufacturing business? The reason i ask is today i found out that i was not shortlisted for a role as advisor and another recruitment consultant would not even forward my CV to another employer because i do not hold a CIEH qualification in food safety nor been working in food industry. Would this be an acceptable reason considering the positions advertised H&S Manager and Advisor? Food safety is different in my understanding(or have misunderstood this qualification?)I have a degree in Safety, Health and Environmental Mgt, many various training qualifications and nearly 5 years in H&S advisory within large multi-nationals in engineering industry and some CDM experience. I develop and implement policy, manage risk management programmes, develop/plan/deliver training, audit, set up health programmes, deal with external bodies, lead management teams, lead investigations, reporting internally and externally, etc, etc. I believe a good all round experience. At start of my career i also have some exposure to dairy production site safety management with large retail business in England. I feel slightly annoyed and cannot understand this as i feel my training, qualifications and experiences should more than qualify me for at least the interviewing stage of either of these positions. Can anyone please let me know their opinion or anyone currently working in the food industry please let me know how knowledge of H&S MS, legislation, etc is not transferable to food manufacturing industry from other industries? Sorry for the rant, just pretty depressed this evening and worried about the lack of H&S opportunities out there- especially here in N.Ireland.

Posted By James Denman It is difficult moving from one industry to another because a lot of companies (rightly or wrongly) believe that their industry is specialist and the food and drink industry is no different. I have been in this industry for over ten years and I am soon to be moving into a different manufacturing environment, but it has not been easy. As the previous poster said, it is an employers market so you will just have to keep plugging away.

Posted By Paul Duell My last job was in food manufacturing, and it was company policy that everyone there - and I mean everyone, including office staff who never went near the food production area - had at least a basic food hygiene qualification. If the firms you've applied to have this policy, they either need to recruit someone who already has it, or train them as soon as they start. If they've got enough candidates with the quals they're after to form a shortlist, then that's what they're going to do. Hope this helps - but if you're going to be working in food production areas, at least some basic knowledge of food protection is essential.

Posted By Alex W Falconer Unfortunately, this as previous posters have highlighted, it is an employers market and they can afford to be more selective. Having previously worked in food manufacturing (without any food safety qualifications) I was fortunate enough to obtain the post (through a reccommendation by a previous colleague working for a Management Systems Accreditation company). Despite the comments by some posters, I will challenge, irrespective of how much high level experience & qualifications you have, It does not give you the right to walk into any particular job. Food safety is completely different, as well as considering hygiene qualifications, it is also helpful to have at least an understanding of HACCP principles, remember this does not just cover food quality principles, but also the issues of food safety/hygiene etc, etc. Other areas you have to consider are what to do in the event of food poisoning outbreaks, product recall situations, the standard good hygiene practices, when product has become contaminated (ie by plaster, employee mobile phone, operational tool, etc) There are too many issues to mention, however in a nutshell it is not as simple as that to get into as walking from say either an oil & gas or engineering role, or even any other manufacturing role for that matter. Alex

Posted By A Campbell Think that's what I said...but in less words I suppose!