Food Cooking Machine Operators and Tenders

Food cooking machine operators and tenders run the industrial equipment that transforms raw ingredients into the packaged foods found in grocery stores and restaurants. They operate large-scale cooking machinery like steam vats, deep fryers, pressure cookers, and industrial boilers that process everything from potato chips and canned soups to frozen dinners and bakery products. Throughout their shifts, they monitor temperature gauges, adjust cooking times, and ensure that equipment runs smoothly and safely. They load ingredients into machines, start cooking cycles, and remove finished products when processing is complete.