Discover a Day in the Life of a Product Line Work

You will learn:

• What a typical day is like as a product line work
• The main responsibilities of a product line work
• Why this industry matters to our wider food system
• How you can take up this career path

Meet Didem Enderoğlu, a Lecturer in the Nişantaşı University Gastronomy and Culinary Department. Didem tells us about her job as a product line worker and how you can train to become one too.

A typical day as a product line worker can be exceptionally long, but also, extremely rewarding. “If our class starts at 08:30 or 09:00 in the morning, we arrive at the university at 06:00 and prepare for the day. We print out all the recipes to be covered in class, go through the preliminary stages, and ensure the overall control of the class. If there are any issues, we make notes”.

Although the main focus is on the recipes and learning how to create them, it is also important that attending students appear ready to work too. “When students arrive, we check everything, from their appearance to hygiene, including socks and nails”.

Not only are the students based in the kitchen, but they also take various courses to further their knowledge and skills. “They take various courses, covering topics such as nutritional values, hygiene, food technology, food styling, essential branch courses like Italian cuisine, Spanish cuisine, and French cuisine, main basic cuisines.”

Within the university, a mini school has been established for students who have passed certain exams. They are then taken in as assistant students, meaning they could be an assistant to a chef that visits the classes. “These students support their lecturer, work on the purchasing side, ensure controls, and manage cleanliness. They take care of everything from the cleanliness of incoming students to overall maintenance. Over these four years, the students get to experience everything related to the industry from A to Z.”

Didem has been teaching for 9 years across various universities. An excellent route to gaining the skills and experience needed to become a product line worker is by studying a relevant degree at university. Didem graduated from the Culinary Arts Academy in 2016, which helped her to pursue the profession she loves. She also gained work experience in various restaurants, which is another excellent option for gaining the necessary understanding to get yourself into a similar area of work.

After Didem’s work experience in various restaurant's, she received an offer through one of her university professors.

“I wanted to consider this opportunity. While the university provides a comfortable working environment for academics, but the gastronomy program comes with its own set of challenges.”

A product line worker holds many responsibilities within their role, including being safe and hygienic, as well as dealing well under pressure to ensure products are created to a high standard. Being a lecturer at the same to numerous students, adds extra pressure to the role, as they are then in charge of multiple people, their work, and their welfare under work too. Being able to create good produce, whilst teach and manage at the same time, requires excellent communication, organisation, and a lot of skill.

“Working has indeed become very challenging nowadays. It involves difficult conditions indeed,” including but not limited to, long work hours such as waking up at six in the morning, working until early hours such as 3am, and often not being able to meet up with friends, limiting social lives out of work hours.

Although the hours are long, and meeting up with friends can be tricky, Didem says if you love what you do, then it “won't feel painful; in fact, it brings success.”

“My advice to young people would probably be to do what they truly love. I am very happy because I did so. I get to do in my hobby every day, and I come here with love every day. I consider myself fortunate to work in this way in Türkiye.”