Food Production team member

Do you love cooking from scratch and working with great ingredients? Want to work with a friendly, hard-working and dedicated team making delicious organic produce for our farm shops.....? We want to hear from you.

About us

Ben’s Farm Shops is the product of Ben Watson’s enthusiasm for great food. He started developing his skills in butchery, curing hams and bacon and making pies and sausages from pigs raised on the family’s Riverford Farm in Devon in 1984. From a converted garage and occasional farm gate sales the business has grown to three thriving farm shops and production kitchen. The shops offer a wide range of groceries as well as products from our own kitchen, and have built our justifiable reputation for being the “real thing”. The name of the business changed from Riverford Farm Shops to Ben’s Farm Shop in 2016 but the ethos and founding principles remain the same.

Focus of the role

Our Kitchen on the Farm sits at the heart of this and we love nothing better than to make delicious food from scratch for our shops, delis and tapas bar. Our ranges include pasties and pies, cakes, soups, fresh dips and salads, preserves and sauces, ready meals…to name but a few.

You will have a passion for good food and cooking and ideally some kitchen skills to turn your hand to a wide range of food preparation tasks, from preparing veg, making pastry and baked goods, packing and labelling, cleaning and hygiene tasks, completing production documentation, and packing. Having the right attitude, work ethic and the ability to learn are really important, and training is provided.

You will have a keen interest in good food and cooking, and an eye for detail, manual dexterity, the ability to work at pace and to consistently high standards of quality.

Main Responsibilities

The Kitchen works to a weekly production plan in order to maintain stock of all the items in our broad and varied portfolio. Quality and consistency are vital, so you’ll be working to defined recipes and methods making a wide range of different products.

We are ideally looking for an experienced person with relevant training or experience and some kitchen skills, however we would also consider a part-skilled or trainee with the right attitude and commitment. A genuine interest in food and knowledge of different techniques and cuisines would be an advantage.

There is some manual lifting required, such as trays of baked goods, and the physical nature of the role demands that the team are up and on their feet most of the shift. As part of a small team you’ll be expected to be flexible.

What are we looking for in the ideal person for the job?

· Previous experience of working in a kitchen or similar artisan food production role would be an advantage

· Excellent attention to quality and detail but also able to work efficiently at pace.

· Adaptable and positive attitude to work, even if some tasks are repetitive

· Able to communicate at an intermediate level in spoken and written English, follow written recipes and instructions and with basic IT skills.

· Able to follow instructions effectively and consistently and work to defined standards

· Friendly, pleasant gets on well with co-workers to work effectively in a small team

· Willing, helpful and trustworthy

The nitty gritty

· You will work 5 x 10 hour shifts (40 hrs) per week but some flexibility may be required. Shifts will be 5 days from Monday to Friday. Start time will be 09:30 but flexibility may be required.

· The rate of pay starts at £11 per hour and is reviewed annually. There is a pension scheme that the company contributes to as well as personal discount for you at Ben's Wine & Tapas as well as the Farm shops. You will also be included in the profit share scheme and we provide uniform.

· The Kitchen is in a rural location access to your own transport is essential.

Job Types: Full-time, Permanent

Salary: £11.00 per hour

Benefits:

• Free parking
• On-site parking
• Profit sharing
• Store discount

Schedule:

• 8 hour shift
• Day shift
• Monday to Friday

Work Location: In person