Futureintech

Description

We produce over ten million muesli bars every week, a good proportion of which are exported to Australia. Twenty million dollars were invested recently to provide the factory with computer controlled robotic food manufacturing machinery, so our plant is up to date with the latest technology.

We have 215 staff and operate 24 hours a day, five days a week. The company has enjoyed a growth phase over the last seven years, becoming one of the largest employers in West Auckland.

Tasti Products employs nine people who have engineering or electronics backgrounds, and another nine with food technology or science qualifications. We depend on being innovative to keep our place in the market and to produce more growth for us in the Australasian market.

We recruit in several ways, using billboards beside the busy North Western motorway, other forms of advertising, recruitment specialists, direct approaches to universities and word of mouth. We find that food technologist qualifications are thin on the ground here. In January we recruited an experienced food technologist from the UK. To retain people we provide challenge, opportunities and hands on experience.

Tasti Products provides pathways for people with engineering, science and technology qualifications to reach senior management positions within the company.

There is a worrying shortage of the technical skills we need to keep up with international trends in food formulation and technology. Food technology and food science are cornerstones of the innovation and production processes we use. New Zealand needs young people to train in these areas if we are to remain internationally competitive.

Suggestions for young people: Work hard at school. Have an end goal in mind. If you are interested in a particular field, talk to people in that industry, find out what it's really like, either by asking lots of questions, or better still, by taking a summer job and finding out first hand.