by Helen Burrett
To celebrate National Apprenticeship Week we’ve interviewed Katarina Mak, Applications Technologist, who gives an insight into her role with JPL Flavours, from Apprentice to Taste Creator.
We’re really interested in hearing you share your journey as an Applications Technologist in the flavour industry. To start off, can you tell us about your apprenticeship experience and how it led you to your current role in the Applications lab at JPL?
I saw the opportunity online on the Gov.uk apprenticeship website and applied online. The role intrigued me because I like being hands-on and I find myself to be more of a creative person. I first had a phone interview with the college and then I did a functional skills test for Maths and English. Then I came to the JPL offices to have an interview with my current manager Dave and Gemma from the commercial team. I also did a trial day in the lab so I could find out what it’s all about before starting my role as an apprentice.
How did your apprenticeship work in terms of on-the-job training and traditional studying?
It took 2-3 years to complete. I did one day a week in college, studying Applied Science. I had to complete several written assignments and an exam for each of the three sciences.
Everything I did in work, in terms of training, was documented to show evidence to the external assessor. They needed to see that I was gaining skills, behaviours and knowledge through either photographic evidence, witness testimony and written statements as well needing 20% off-the-job training done before I could be qualified to do the end-point-assessment. My off-the-job training was spent shadowing different departments and online courses on health & safety policies.
There were three parts to my end point assessment which took 2 days to complete, I was assessed through an observation, knowledge test and an interview.
What qualification do you now have through your apprenticeship?
BTEC Level 3 Applied Science and Laboratory Technician.
Can you walk us through a typical day in the Applications lab and the kind of work you’re involved in?
We are assigned projects that are from customers, on-going background projects or requested internally from other departments. Sometimes we have last minute requests in the middle of the day, and we may have to drop what we’re doing to prioritise that.
The timeline for us to complete projects vary; the development for some projects might require far more time or some could take less than a day to complete.
If I was to explain our typical day in a generic step by step of how we complete projects, we would first look at the project brief. It would tell us what flavour profiles the customer wants and what application they would like to see it in. We would then test a range of flavours in that application, for example an energy drink. We then assess it internally and make any amendments before sending finished product samples to the customer.
Another typical day could be having customers on site, and we work alongside them to trial out different flavours in their products.
What’s the favourite part of your job?
I like working on different projects and working with the team. I love that everyone is adventurous when it comes to tasting different flavoured applications and giving honest insight on what can be improved plus I get to learn new things about how things are manufactured and processed as well as any new regulations that come into place. The food and beverage industry is constantly evolving, I like that there’s always new innovations and interesting products to try and how that affects future trends.
What type of applications do you test flavours in?
We test flavours in majority of market products, mainly food and beverage. I work on various projects a month, including confectionary (gummies, marshmallows, boiled sweets) and bakery (for example muffins and biscuits) and then savoury products, so things like meat glazes and rubs, flavours used in seasonings and vegan applications (meat analogues and vegan cheeses). We do a lot of application work in beverages for example sports nutrition, energy drinks, slushies, carbonated drinks and liqueur and we have also tested flavours in pharmaceuticals and skin-care products.
Finally, what would you like to see in the flavour industry as a whole?
I would love to see more variation of flavours in the UK in food and drink products compared to the traditional flavours. We create so many new flavours daily at JPL and it’s great when we get to work with food and beverage manufacturers who are looking for the next new thing.”
To keep on top of our new developments at JPL Flavours, including any career opportunities, visit our Culture & Careers page here.
