| Answer: Next to breath, life of human being is solely dependent on food and health, and hence the importance of food science and technology in keeping us healthy can never be overlooked. The fast paced life of today has ushered in the era of convenience food or more popularly the fast food culture in our country. On one hand this has led to the growing demand for packed and processed food and on the other it has made the consumer more quality and nutrition conscious. All these factors pose a very encouraging picture on the future of Food Processing Industry (FPI) in India. The food processing industry encompasses basic foods like wheat and rice products and the processes for converting them into edible form; besides processed foods such as bakery & confectionery products, dairy products, meat and fish products, fruit and vegetable products in short, everything which is processed and packaged to enhance and prolong the edible shelf life. This technology has indeed revolutionized the food habits of the people in our country by having cooked and packed foods in attractive packages in their homes. In fact these foods have become a status symbol for many households in the country.
Food Processing Industry is a very fast growing industry with good job prospects in India and abroad. Processed and preserved foodstuffs have been instrumental in bringing about a change in the food habits of a large urban populace. From eating merely for subsistence, people now prefer to supplement their diet with ‘value-added food’. Increase in consumption of processed foods is noticeable across various sections of the population and the trend of ‘eating out’ has grown manifold. In tune with theses trends, the market for processed food is growing significantly. As per the latest estimate it is an interesting fact, that “The food industry is the fifth largest industry in the country. Currently, it generates employment for about 20 lakhs people and will generate new jobs to extent of 2.5 lakhs every year. Further in many advanced nations, it is the largest industry”. Obviously, with such growth on the anvil, investment and restructuring are required in processing, retailing and for setting up cooperatives. This tool is also widely used for streamlining the agricultural sector, which in turn enhances growth of the food technology industry. Food production, procurement, processing, distribution networks and retailing are attracting large integrated players into the field. With the open market policies of the government and globalization, this industry has also attracted multinational participation. It is a thrust area recognized by the government as well. Needless to say, the industry is now offering tremendous job opportunities to qualified food technologists.
There is a plethora of opportunities for food technologists, mainly in institutions like processing industries, hotels, food industries, quality control, hospitals, packaging industries, distilleries, bakery industries, soft drink factories, product design, pharmaceutical industry, biochemical engineering, spice, cereal and rice mills etc.
It is estimated that the ratio of various types of jobs available in today’s scenario in the country are as :
1.Factory production : 60%;
2.Research & Development (R&D) : 15%;
3.Government laboratories : 3%;
4.Teaching : 2%;
5.Other jobs : 20%.
All the best
CareerAge Counselor
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