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Refining machine operator

Also called refining worker, refining operator, refining machine worker

Refining machine operators tend machines to refine crude oils, such as soybean oil, cottonseed oil, and peanut oil. They tend wash tanks to remove by-products and remove impurities with heat.

Will there be jobs?Yes, good prospectsShortage in 11 countries now. 22 jobs to fill by 2035 for every 100 people doing this work today.Stationary plant and machine operatorsWhat does it pay?About averageFrom about €1,000 (Bulgaria) to €5,500 (Denmark) a month, depending on the country.Estimate · Stationary plant and machine operatorsWhat do I need to study?Upper secondary or vocational6 in 10 finished upper secondary or vocational training. 7 in 10 train through vocational routes.Stationary plant and machine operatorsWill AI change it?Very littleLevel 1 of 6. AI could help with only small parts of the tasks.Food and related products machine operators · ILO

What you'd do

Food and related products machine operators · ILO
  • Operating and monitoring machinery used to restrain, stun, slaughter animals and to trim carcasses into standard meat and fish cuts
  • Setting, operating and attending machinery and ovens to mix, bake and otherwise prepare bread and flour confectionery products
  • Operating machinery to crush, mix, malt, cook and ferment grains and fruits to produce beer, wines, malt liquors, vinegar, yeast and related products
  • Attending equipment to make jam, toffee, cheese, processed cheese, margarine, syrup, ice, pasta, ice-cream, sausages, chocolate, maize starch, edible fats and dextrin
  • Operating equipment to cool, heat, dry, roast, blanch, pasteurize, smoke, sterilize, freeze, evaporate and concentrate foodstuffs and liquids used in food processing
  • Mixing, pulping, grinding, blending and separating foodstuffs and liquids with churning, pressing, sieving, grinding and filtering equipment
  • Processing tobacco leaves by machine to make cigarettes, cigars, pipe and other tobacco products
Apply GMPApply HACCPApply requirements concerning manufacturing of food and beveragesClean food and beverage machineryFollow hygienic procedures during food processing+ 14 more essential skills
What the work is like
  • Indoors
  • On your feet most of the day
  • Lots of contact with people, mostly with colleagues
  • Some freedom to decide
  • Usually 40 hours a week
  • Deadlines most weeks
  • Some repetitive tasks
US data: based on the O*NET profile of the related, broader US job "Cleaning, Washing, and Metal Pickling Equipment Operators and Tenders"

Will there be jobs?

Yes, good prospects

11 EU countries are short of food and related products machine operators now, but fewer jobs than in most work will need filling by 2035.

People working as stationary plant and machine operators in the EU
4.79m4.76m4.7m 201520232035

Solid: measured. Dashed: forecast.

Jobs to fill, 2026–2035
1,125,000 replacing leavers 71,000 jobs disappear
Jobs to fill per 100 people working now
Stationary plant and machine operators22
All jobs29
Right now
11 of 27 countries report a shortage of food and related products machine operators, 5 a surplus.
Food and related products machine operators · EURES

What does it pay?

About average

Pay depends a lot on the country: from about €1,000 a month (Bulgaria) to €5,500 (Denmark), before tax.

Pick a country at the top of the page to see typical pay there, for people under 30, and compared with all jobs.

Among plant and machine operators, and assemblers in the EU, women earn 21% less per hour than men. Plant and machine operators, and assemblers · Eurostat

What do I need to study?

Upper secondary or vocational

Upper secondary or vocational training in food processing is the usual route.

Highest qualification of stationary plant and machine operators (EU, 2025)
Degree 8%Vocational 53%General secondary 10%Basic schooling 29%
Field that teaches it
Food processing
Vocational route, EU
7 in 10 trainees in this field

Pick a country at the top of the page to see where to study and the official course finders.

Will AI change it?

Very little

AI could help with only small parts of the tasks.

How exposed is this job? ILO scale
Very low
Low
Some tasks
Moderate
Significant
High

Average task score 0.15 on a scale from 0 (AI can't do it) to 1 (AI could do it fully).

See the score for each of the 7 tasks
Mixing, pulping, grinding, blending and separating foodstuffs and liquids with churning, pressing, sieving, grinding and filtering equipment0.19
Attending equipment to make jam, toffee, cheese, processed cheese, margarine, syrup, ice, pasta, ice-cream, sausages, chocolate, maize starch, edible fats and dextrin0.18
Operating equipment to cool, heat, dry, roast, blanch, pasteurize, smoke, sterilize, freeze, evaporate and concentrate foodstuffs and liquids used in food processing0.17
Setting, operating and attending machinery and ovens to mix, bake and otherwise prepare bread and flour confectionery products0.15
Processing tobacco leaves by machine to make cigarettes, cigars, pipe and other tobacco products0.14
Operating machinery to crush, mix, malt, cook and ferment grains and fruits to produce beer, wines, malt liquors, vinegar, yeast and related products0.13
Operating and monitoring machinery used to restrain, stun, slaughter animals and to trim carcasses into standard meat and fish cuts0.11

Based on what AI could technically do when assessed in 2025. It is not a forecast for a future year, and not a forecast of job losses. Scores for food and related products machine operators. Source: ILO (2025), adapted (credits).