Review of the Food Processing Training Package (FDF03)

	Project overview		Provide feedback		Attend workshop
	View feedback		Final materials		Edit submitted feedback

Project Manager
Jane Brownbill
Agri-Food Industry Skills Council
Tel: 02 6163 7230
jane.brownbill@agrifoodskills.net.au

Consultant
Randy Flierman
Avenir Consulting
Tel: 07 5492 8696
flierman@ozemail.com.au

Project Overview
National Steering Committee
Timelines and Methodology
Environmental scan
Qualifications framework
Background

Reports

Project Overview

Food processing training package skills framework. (pdf)

Project update for the food training package environmental scan. (pdf)

The Board of the Agri-Food Industry Skills Council has directed the council to conduct an analysis of the Food Processing Sector to determine its future skills development needs. Changes to Australian Government policy and procedures require the incorporation of employability skills, identification and removal of unnecessary duplication and template adherence.

The Food Processing Training Package is the national benchmark for skills development in the industry and comprises the nationally-endorsed qualifications for the food processing sectors.

The second iteration of the Food Processing Training Package (FDF03) has been in operation since March 2003. In keeping with its role in managing continuous improvement of training packages, the council is undertaking an environmental scan to determine the accuracy and effectiveness of the package and its qualifications.

The Board has approved the appointment of Randy Flierman of Avenir Consulting to undertake this process. During the preliminary study the consultant will:

• Consult key stakeholders
• Determine any competency gaps
• Examine ways to improve competencies and assessment guidelines
• Examine ways to rationalise and reconfigure qualifications and competencies where appropriate
• Examine any re-engineering of training package packaging rules
• Consider the need for inclusion of 'Employability Skills'

Issues for comment

1. Accuracy of unit content - please be specific about any unit(s) that you feel are inadequate, why they are inadequate and what needs to be done to improve it/them.
2. Missing units - each unit relates to a specific work function. Are there any work functions that you believe are missing from the current structure (gaps in the qualifications)?- these may include new work practices, technology or products - please advise what these may be.
3. Accuracy of the qualifications - each qualification should relate to a job role/occupation - do the qualifications appropriately represent current job roles or are they too narrow, too broad or omit specific skills required by the industry of today?
4. Flexibility of qualification structuring rules - qualifications should enable individuals to access skills relevant to the workplace by selecting units appropriate to their job role, please comment on any issues or improvements for this process.
5. Impediments to using the Food Processing Training Package - please comment on training or industry issues which restrict or prevent use of the Training Package and its qualifications.
6. Other - please provide any other comments that you feel may aid the redevelopment of this Training Package.

Comment about the Review of Food Processing can be made up to the end of April.

National Steering Committee

The Board has appointed a National Steering Committee to assess the appropriateness of the current units of competency, qualifications and assessment guidelines and examine any gaps in the sector, and then to advise the consultant. The consultant will hold a number of face-to-face meetings with key stakeholders supplemented by telephone interviews and desk-top research. We will place workshop dates on the website as they come available.

Doug Stevens - Committee Chairman
National Union of Workers
Director, Agri-Food Industry Skills Council
dstevens@nuw.org.au

Andrew Combe
National Food Industry Strategy
andrew.combe@nfis.com.au

Peter Cranston
Australian Self-Medication Industry
peter@asmi.com.au

Ken Fraser
TAFE NSW
kenneth.fraser@tafe.nsw.edu.au

John Harvey
Chalk Hill Wines
john@chalkhill.com.au

Michael Hedley
Simplot Australia
michael.hedley@simplot.com.au

Observer
Kathi Eland
Department of Education and Training
kathi.eland@dest.gov.au

Lyn Malcolm
National Food Safety Auditor Scheme Committee
lyn.malcolm@daff.gov.au

Trish McCullough
Department of Education Tasmania
trish.mccullough@education.tas.gov.au

Joanne Patterson
Dairy Food Safety Vic
jpatterson@dairysafe.vic.gov.au

Sarah Pendlebury
Innoven Food Industry Centre
Goulburn Ovens Institute of TAFE
spendlebury@gotafe.vic.edu.au

Terry Richards
Australian College of Training
terry.richards@auscollege.com.au

Scott Wiseman
Queensland Baking Industry Association
scott@biaq.org.au

Timelines and Methodology

Timelines

• Project approved by Board of the Agri-Food Industry Skills Council (2005)
• Initial steering committee meeting: 1 December 2005
• Project planning and preparation: late December/January 2006
• Commencement of environmental scan activities: late January 2006
• Meetings with key stakeholders: late January/February 2006
• Receipt of submissions from various stakeholders: end of March 2006
• Desktop analysis: throughout February/March 2006
• Compilation of initial findings and feedback: mid-April 2006
• Presentation of draft findings and feedback to steering committee: late April 2006
• Development of final recommendations and report: through May 2006
• Final presentation of full environmental scan, findings and recommendations: mid-June 2006

Methodology

The methodology for this project will follow key principles of research and include:

• Meetings with key stakeholders to gauge the current industry environment pertaining to skills development and capacity of the Training Package, its content and effectiveness to respond to this environment.
• Preparation and use of an Issues Register to compile feedback and research.
• Analysis of take up within and across the qualifications based on AVETMISS or NCVER data for publicly funded enrolments.
• Identify possible impediments to the take up of training through consultation and research.
• Research the methods/styles used to develop the Training Package qualifications, competencies and assessment guidelines and assess their relevance.
• Evaluation of the packaging rules used to form the requirements for use of the Training Package to consider improvement strategies.
• Seek feedback from relevant (and known) stakeholders via written invitation, including employer and employee groups, State/Territory ITABs, Registered Training Organisations, State Training Agencies and other interested stakeholders.
• Review coverage of the Package and areas of commonality or duplication.
• Define the Food Processing industry profile to assist in the confirmation of qualifications and competencies.
• Include AFISC policy on employability skills, rationalisation and framework incorporation.
• Development of draft recommendations and findings from the consultation and research.
• Finalisation of environmental scan report, identifying key areas of change necessary for its further progress.

Environmental scan

Should you wish to discuss the Food Processing Training Package environmental scan with us, please contact the consultant - Randy Flierman on 07 5492 8696 or email at flierman@ozemail.com.au or Project Manager Jenny Wardrop on 02 6163 7230 or by email at jenny.wardrop@agrifoodskills.net.au

The environmental scan involves research into the satisfaction levels of the Food Processing Training Package in respect to content, structure and application. The scan will identify any amendments required as a result of any changes to Government policy in the previous three years.

Work on the environmental scan will conclude in early May 2006, culminating in a report and series of recommendations to the Board of the Agri-Food Industry Skills Council for consideration. This will allow work to commence on redevelopment of the package soon after.

The scan will explore any synergies with the meat and seafood sectors. Similarly, it will investigate additional areas not yet addressed by the package such as brewing, rice, eggs, pet food and other potential areas.

From an upgrade perspective, the research will report on:

• uptake of the package to date - determining the level of participation in all qualifications;
• incorporation of 'Employability Skills' - advising on the incorporation of generic and transferable skills that a portable across all Australian workplaces;
• 'Rationalisation' - determining areas of duplication across qualifications and units;
• unit template reconfiguration - determining what changes are required to the set out of units to comply with current Government policy;
• assessment guideline reconfiguration - determining what changes are required to the set out of the assessment guidelines to comply with current Government policy; and
• alignment to the Agri-Food Integrated Framework - determining how all qualifications and units can be brought into an organising framework which allows greater portability between the industries and sectors.

Explanation of terms

• Continuous Improvement describes a process of constant updating and reviewing Training Packages based on regular cycles of planning, development, validation and implementation.
• Rationalisation is a process to find and reduce any duplication of units across different Training Packages. The council has built in processes to enhance communication across Training Package development so that Rationalisation remains a priority focus.
• Employability Skills refers to a wider range of improved self-management techniques and interpersonal and conceptual skills to enhance and complement agri-food certificate and diploma courses.

Qualifications framework

If you wish to familiarise yourself with the individual units of competency in each qualification, they can be found on the following website www.ntis.gov.au

1. On the home page under BROWSE NTIS - click 'TRAINING PACKAGE'
2. Scroll down to FDF03 and SELECT
3. Under the TOOLS - click 'UNITS'
4. SELECT individual units of competency at your discretion

Food Processing Industry Training Package Endorsed Components

Food Processing Industry Training Package - Wine Sector Endorsed Components

Background

The Agri-Food Industry Skills Council covers five major industry groups including:

• Food, Beverage (including wine) and Pharmaceutical Manufacturing
• Rural and Related Industries
• Meat Processing
• Seafood Industry
• Racing Industry

The sectors covered by these five major industry groupings include, food processing, beverages and pharmaceuticals, rural production, including amenity horticulture, conservation and land management, animal care and management, abattoir operations, retail meat, small-good meats, meat food services, thoroughbred racing, harness racing, greyhound racing, aquaculture, fishery compliance, seafood sales and distribution, fishing and fishing charter operations, and seafood processing.

The key industry features of these sectors vary considerably. They range from highly-concentrated sectors to large and diverse sectors dominated by small enterprises and include variations between large export markets and non-metropolitan based operations.

In order to meet the diversification within the agri-food industries and to cater for its decentralised nature, outcomes must be developed which provide for these widespread variations.

Food processing has many sectors, some with close inter-relationships. A lesser number are quite unique in their outcomes and procedures. The areas to be considered as part of the environmental scan are:

• Aerated water
• Baking
• Brewing
• Cakes
• Condiments and spices
• Confectionary
• Dairy
• Eggs
• Fats and oils
• Flour milling
• Fruit and vegetables
• Food manufacturing
• Honey
• Ice manufacturing
• Pasta
• Pet foods
• Pharmaceuticals
• Poultry
• Pre-prepared meals
• Rice
• Stock feed milling
• Tea and coffee
• Tobacco manufacturing
• Wine production