Food Cooking Machine Operators and Tenders: Job Description
Operate or tend cooking equipment, such as steam cooking vats, deep fry cookers, pressure cookers, kettles, and boilers, to prepare food products.
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What Tasks Do Food Cooking Machine Operators and Tenders Do?
Typical responsibilities of food cooking machine operators and tenders span:
- Clean, wash, and sterilize equipment and cooking area, using water hoses, cleaning or sterilizing solutions, or rinses.
- Read work orders, recipes, or formulas to determine cooking times and temperatures, and ingredient specifications.
- Observe gauges, dials, and product characteristics, and adjust controls to maintain appropriate temperature, pressure, and flow of ingredients.
- Measure or weigh ingredients, using scales or measuring containers.
- Tend or operate and control equipment, such as kettles, cookers, vats and tanks, and boilers, to cook ingredients or prepare products for further processing.
- Record production and test data, such as processing steps, temperature and steam readings, cooking time, batches processed, and test results.
- Set temperature, pressure, and time controls, and start conveyers, machines, or pumps.
- Remove cooked material or products from equipment.
What Food Cooking Machine Operators and Tenders Need to Know
Top food cooking machine operators and tenders rely on a mix of skills and domain knowledge.
Key Skills
These are the skills most important for this role, rated on an importance scale of 0 to 5:
Knowledge Areas
Types of Food Cooking Machine Operators and Tenders Jobs
People in this occupation may also be known by titles such as:
- Bakery Fryer
- Blanching Machine Operator
- Boiler
- Brine Maker
- Casing Cooker
- Chip Fryer
- Chocolate Temperer
- Coconut Boiler
Employment and Demand
There are roughly 571,613 food cooking machine operators and tenders working in the United States today. This occupation is expected to grow by +5.9% over the projection horizon.
How Much Do Food Cooking Machine Operators and Tenders Make?
| Statistic | Value |
|---|---|
| Annual median | $68,878 |
| Hourly median | $33.11 |
| 10th percentile | $45,397 |
| 25th percentile | $57,138 |
| 75th percentile | $80,619 |
| 90th percentile | $92,359 |
Compensation varies based on experience, location, and industry.
How Much Do Food Cooking Machine Operators and Tenders Make in Different U.S. States?
| State | Annual median salary |
|---|---|
| Nebraska | $50,020 |
| Colorado | $49,830 |
| Michigan | $48,070 |
| Washington | $48,020 |
| Minnesota | $47,890 |
| New Mexico | $47,250 |
| Idaho | $46,470 |
| New York | $46,360 |
| Iowa | $45,910 |
| Kansas | $45,580 |
| Tennessee | $45,040 |
| California | $44,720 |
| Massachusetts | $43,090 |
| Illinois | $42,890 |
| Oregon | $42,430 |
| Connecticut | $42,390 |
| Indiana | $41,600 |
| Wisconsin | $40,360 |
| Kentucky | $39,770 |
| Ohio | $38,740 |
| Pennsylvania | $38,570 |
| Georgia | $38,260 |
| Maryland | $38,190 |
| South Dakota | $38,070 |
| Arkansas | $37,770 |
| Utah | $37,610 |
| Louisiana | $37,570 |
| North Carolina | $37,440 |
| South Carolina | $36,870 |
| Virginia | $36,860 |
| Maine | $36,710 |
| New Jersey | $36,100 |
| Missouri | $35,940 |
| New Hampshire | $35,250 |
| Arizona | $33,560 |
| Florida | $33,280 |
| Texas | $33,150 |
| Mississippi | $32,260 |
| Alabama | $26,200 |
| Puerto Rico | $22,670 |
Top-Paying U.S. Regions
Pay for food cooking machine operators and tenders differ across the country. The following regions pay the most:
| Region | Median annual wage | Share of U.S. jobs | Location quotient |
|---|---|---|---|
| Plains States | $44,189 | 12.5% | 2.35 |
| Rocky Mountains | $44,001 | 5.8% | 3.26 |
| Far Western US | $43,294 | 12.7% | 0.86 |
| Great Lakes | $41,756 | 17.9% | 1.31 |
| New England | $40,761 | 3.1% | 1.11 |
| Middle Atlantic | $40,363 | 12.2% | 0.91 |
| Southeast | $38,386 | 22.7% | 1.44 |
| Southwest | $34,444 | 12.8% | 1.10 |
Top Metro Areas
| Metro area | State | Median annual wage | Employment |
|---|---|---|---|
| Modesto, CA | CA | $80,310 | 150 |
| Kiryas Joel-Poughkeepsie-Newburgh, NY | NY | $55,870 | 90 |
| Denver-Aurora-Centennial, CO | CO | $55,630 | 100 |
| Seattle-Tacoma-Bellevue, WA | WA | $52,850 | 70 |
| Minneapolis-St. Paul-Bloomington, MN-WI | MN | $51,490 | 200 |
| Ogden, UT | UT | $50,980 | 80 |
| Appleton, WI | WI | $50,860 | 60 |
| Sioux City, IA-NE-SD | IA | $50,020 | 190 |
Top Industries Employing Food Cooking Machine Operators and Tenders
Most food cooking machine operators and tenders work in these industries:
| Industry | Employment | Median annual wage |
|---|---|---|
| Manufacturing | 22,480 | $42,080 |
| Accommodation and Food Services | 1,990 | $39,670 |
| Wholesale Trade | 1,620 | $33,570 |
| Administrative and Support and Waste Management and Remediation Services | 640 | $36,120 |
| Retail Trade | 580 | $31,470 |
| Transportation and Warehousing | 310 | $35,080 |
The table below shows some of the most common industries where those employed in this career field work.
Tech Stack
- Data base user interface and query software: Database software
Work Environment
The on-the-job environment of food cooking machine operators and tenders tends to involve the following characteristics:
- Determine Tasks, Priorities and Goals
- Indoors, Environmentally Controlled
- Spend Time Using Your Hands to Handle, Control, or Feel Objects, Tools, or Controls
- Freedom to Make Decisions
- Work With or Contribute to a Work Group or Team
Getting Started in This Career
Most food cooking machine operators and tenders positions require a high school diploma or equivalent as the typical entry-level education. This career aligns with Some Preparation Needed (Job Zone 2), reflecting the level of preparation typically expected.
Similar Occupations
Similar Occupations
- Cooks, Restaurant (Primary-Long)
- Graders and Sorters, Agricultural Products (Supplemental)
- Bakers (Primary-Long)
- Food and Tobacco Roasting, Baking, and Drying Machine Operators and Tenders (Primary-Short)
- Food Batchmakers (Primary-Short)
- Metal-Refining Furnace Operators and Tenders (Supplemental)
- Heat Treating Equipment Setters, Operators, and Tenders, Metal and Plastic (Supplemental)
- Textile Bleaching and Dyeing Machine Operators and Tenders (Supplemental)
References
Data on this page comes from the following authoritative sources:
- U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics — Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (OEWS) for employment and wage data by state and industry.
- BLS Employment Projections for total employment and growth forecasts.
- O*NET (Occupational Information Network) for skills, knowledge, tasks, work activities, work context, technology, and education-zone data.
SOC code: 51-3093.00 (Food Cooking Machine Operators and Tenders).
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