What is the outlook for Graduate careers in Food?
We are all aware that the current economic climate is far from its best; it has been for some time and is unlikely to improve in the immediate future. As well as many senior level and junior level employees losing their jobs as a result of the 'credit crunch', students who stand to graduate in summer 2009 are finding it increasingly harder to find a graduate scheme that is running this year. Heinz and Bakkavor, to name but a few, have put their graduate roles on hold for the foreseeable future.
This is not the first time that graduates have been struggling to find jobs after finishing University. In 2001, a report on the Times Higher Education website stated that 1 in 5 out of 66 surveyed companies (that were registered as members of the Association of Graduate Recruiters) said they had deferred graduate roles for an average of 12 months, while 1 in 10 had withdrawn offers already made to graduates. Here in January 2009, the situation is undoubtedly worse, as graduates will be struggling to find jobs in any area, never mind one that will utilise the skills they have been taught throughout their degree.
However, it is not all doom and gloom for graduates. Aldi have announced they are looking to take on Graduate Area Managers with a starting salary of £40k, rising to £57,750 after 3 years, and have also thrown in a fully expensed Audi A4. Not bad for a graduate salary!
As someone who is on industrial placement at the moment, with about 18 months until I'm due to graduate, I personally will be looking to stay in education for as long as possible, and avoid looking for graduate schemes or alternative employment for as long as possible. That will include the possibility of either a Masters, travelling after graduation, or a more appealing option (to me) of securing employment for 6, 12 or even 18 months in a foreign country.
I can only wish the 300,000 students due to graduate in June 2009 the best of luck in fighting for the recently-government-backed graduate roles at Barclays and Microsoft (BBC Website, Intern plan to ease graduate woes), and hope that the economic climate has improved by June 2010 when I'm due to graduate.
This is not the first time that graduates have been struggling to find jobs after finishing University. In 2001, a report on the Times Higher Education website stated that 1 in 5 out of 66 surveyed companies (that were registered as members of the Association of Graduate Recruiters) said they had deferred graduate roles for an average of 12 months, while 1 in 10 had withdrawn offers already made to graduates. Here in January 2009, the situation is undoubtedly worse, as graduates will be struggling to find jobs in any area, never mind one that will utilise the skills they have been taught throughout their degree.
However, it is not all doom and gloom for graduates. Aldi have announced they are looking to take on Graduate Area Managers with a starting salary of £40k, rising to £57,750 after 3 years, and have also thrown in a fully expensed Audi A4. Not bad for a graduate salary!
As someone who is on industrial placement at the moment, with about 18 months until I'm due to graduate, I personally will be looking to stay in education for as long as possible, and avoid looking for graduate schemes or alternative employment for as long as possible. That will include the possibility of either a Masters, travelling after graduation, or a more appealing option (to me) of securing employment for 6, 12 or even 18 months in a foreign country.
I can only wish the 300,000 students due to graduate in June 2009 the best of luck in fighting for the recently-government-backed graduate roles at Barclays and Microsoft (BBC Website, Intern plan to ease graduate woes), and hope that the economic climate has improved by June 2010 when I'm due to graduate.
Will tonight's Chinese takeaway take you over the calorie limit?
A voluntary scheme aimed at encouraging takeaways, restaurants and canteens to advertise how many calories are in each item on their menus will be introduced within six months in the latest move to tackle Britain's mounting obesity, the government's Food Standards Agency said last Thursday.
This move is in response to a survey carried out by the agency last summer of more than 2,000 adults. 85% of respondents felt that restaurants, pubs and cafes had a responsibility to make clear what was in the food they served.
Men in Britain now get 25% of their food energy intake outside the home, while women get 21%. A number of chains, including KFC, Starbucks and McDonald's, already offer nutritional information on websites or leaflets, but now the catering industry will be expected to go far further. Officials at the agency hinted that if the calorie counting was a success, the drive for information could lead to an extension of the traffic light scheme, which applies to food sold in grocery stores.
Tim Smith, chief executive of the FSA, also suggested that TV chefs ought to be doing more to give calorie and nutrition information: "I think there will be television producers who start waking up to the idea simply providing recipes is not enough."
Whilst the new scheme is not going to be policed, how will voluntary compliance affect those employed in the food sector? For the big chains with standard menus, the cost of implementing this is likely to be minimal, but what about the impact on the local family owned restaurant that entices customers by offering an ever changing menu? How about our chefs? Will they arrive at work and go straight to the calculator to work out whether today's special will be over the calorie limit?
This move is in response to a survey carried out by the agency last summer of more than 2,000 adults. 85% of respondents felt that restaurants, pubs and cafes had a responsibility to make clear what was in the food they served.
Men in Britain now get 25% of their food energy intake outside the home, while women get 21%. A number of chains, including KFC, Starbucks and McDonald's, already offer nutritional information on websites or leaflets, but now the catering industry will be expected to go far further. Officials at the agency hinted that if the calorie counting was a success, the drive for information could lead to an extension of the traffic light scheme, which applies to food sold in grocery stores.
Tim Smith, chief executive of the FSA, also suggested that TV chefs ought to be doing more to give calorie and nutrition information: "I think there will be television producers who start waking up to the idea simply providing recipes is not enough."
Whilst the new scheme is not going to be policed, how will voluntary compliance affect those employed in the food sector? For the big chains with standard menus, the cost of implementing this is likely to be minimal, but what about the impact on the local family owned restaurant that entices customers by offering an ever changing menu? How about our chefs? Will they arrive at work and go straight to the calculator to work out whether today's special will be over the calorie limit?
Tesco continues to grow amid the economic gloom
The Tesco Group has delivered a strong performance and record sales over the Christmas and New Year period. Group sales increased by 11.6% during the seven weeks to 10 January 2009, driven by continued rapid international expansion and steady growth in the UK.
In the UK, like-for-like sales, excluding petrol, increased by 2.5% in the period. Tesco reports like-for-like sales inclusive of VAT - and adjusting for the reduction in VAT rates, which came into effect in early December, growth on a comparable basis was 3.5%. Although this is likely to be substantially behind the figures of Sainsbury's, Morrisons and Asda, Tesco has strongly hinted it is preparing to further step on the accelerator in the price war raging in the grocery sector.
City analysts said Tesco's underlying UK sales had been dented by the launch of its lower-priced discounter branded products in September. Andrew Higginson, Tesco's chief executive of retailing services, said: "They [discounter brands] have been fairly well received by customers. It is a long game and you have to wait to see how it pans out."
Tesco's non-food performance strengthened a little compared to the third quarter and their services businesses have performed well. In addition the group's overseas businesses also proved profitable over the festive period, delivering a total international sales increase of 32.7%.
Although they may be lagging between their major rivals in the food sector, the group as a whole is looking healthy.
So what is the next logical step for Tesco to take to remain competitive in the supermarket price war? Should they continue with the lower cash margin [discounter] brands, or follow Sainsbury's lead and move from branded products into higher-margin own-label products?
What influences you most when you do your weekly grocery shopping? Do you go for branded, own-label or discount products?
As always we welcome your comments...
In the UK, like-for-like sales, excluding petrol, increased by 2.5% in the period. Tesco reports like-for-like sales inclusive of VAT - and adjusting for the reduction in VAT rates, which came into effect in early December, growth on a comparable basis was 3.5%. Although this is likely to be substantially behind the figures of Sainsbury's, Morrisons and Asda, Tesco has strongly hinted it is preparing to further step on the accelerator in the price war raging in the grocery sector.
City analysts said Tesco's underlying UK sales had been dented by the launch of its lower-priced discounter branded products in September. Andrew Higginson, Tesco's chief executive of retailing services, said: "They [discounter brands] have been fairly well received by customers. It is a long game and you have to wait to see how it pans out."
Tesco's non-food performance strengthened a little compared to the third quarter and their services businesses have performed well. In addition the group's overseas businesses also proved profitable over the festive period, delivering a total international sales increase of 32.7%.
Although they may be lagging between their major rivals in the food sector, the group as a whole is looking healthy.
So what is the next logical step for Tesco to take to remain competitive in the supermarket price war? Should they continue with the lower cash margin [discounter] brands, or follow Sainsbury's lead and move from branded products into higher-margin own-label products?
What influences you most when you do your weekly grocery shopping? Do you go for branded, own-label or discount products?
As always we welcome your comments...
It's not all doom and gloom for the class of 2009
Students who graduate from university this summer were warned on Wednesday that their chances of getting a job have virtually disappeared already.
Vacancies for graduates have fallen by 17 per cent since last summer, cutting jobs on offer by thousands, and most vacancies for this year have already been filled according to a survey of the top 100 graduate recruiters.
It's not all doom and gloom however. Most sectors report a decline in the number of graduate vacancies but employers in the public sector and the Armed Forces stepped up their graduate recruitment in both 2008 and 2009. As a result there are now 51% more entry-levels positions for graduates in the public sector and 17% more roles in the Armed Forces.
And some graduates will still be smiling. Bargain supermarket Aldi will offer recruits of its graduate development programme a starting salary of £40,000 and an Audi A4 car this year. Aldi has seen sales rise as shoppers switch to low-cost food in the economic downturn. This has led the discount chain to expand the number of places on its graduate training scheme by 50% from 100 to 150 places.
If a career in the Armed Forces or at Aldi is not for you, what other options are available to 2009 graduates who have not yet been able to secure a job? Several are considering taking a gap year and broadening their horizons through travel or voluntary work. Another possibility is to take a vocational or conversion course to improve your marketability.
Although some sectors are struggling, there is still a shortage of food scientists and technologists in the UK which is good news for graduates of food science courses.
Are you about to graduate in a food related discipline? Have you already secured a position or are you putting your career on hold until the economic crisis abates?
Vacancies for graduates have fallen by 17 per cent since last summer, cutting jobs on offer by thousands, and most vacancies for this year have already been filled according to a survey of the top 100 graduate recruiters.
It's not all doom and gloom however. Most sectors report a decline in the number of graduate vacancies but employers in the public sector and the Armed Forces stepped up their graduate recruitment in both 2008 and 2009. As a result there are now 51% more entry-levels positions for graduates in the public sector and 17% more roles in the Armed Forces.
And some graduates will still be smiling. Bargain supermarket Aldi will offer recruits of its graduate development programme a starting salary of £40,000 and an Audi A4 car this year. Aldi has seen sales rise as shoppers switch to low-cost food in the economic downturn. This has led the discount chain to expand the number of places on its graduate training scheme by 50% from 100 to 150 places.
If a career in the Armed Forces or at Aldi is not for you, what other options are available to 2009 graduates who have not yet been able to secure a job? Several are considering taking a gap year and broadening their horizons through travel or voluntary work. Another possibility is to take a vocational or conversion course to improve your marketability.
Although some sectors are struggling, there is still a shortage of food scientists and technologists in the UK which is good news for graduates of food science courses.
Are you about to graduate in a food related discipline? Have you already secured a position or are you putting your career on hold until the economic crisis abates?
Christmas winners and losers
Probably not surprisingly last Wednesday, Marks and Spencer unveiled dire Christmas trading figures. Food sales dropped by 5.2% on a like-for-like basis over the 13 weeks to 27 December and that was despite the record £50m taken in the food halls on 23 December. The fallout from their worst performance in a decade has led to Sir Stuart Rose's decision to close 25 of the Simply Food and 2 main chain stores.
Waitrose, who also had a record day on 23 December, benefited from a "late shopping surge" in the last three days before Christmas with a 12% rise in like-for-like sales compared with the same period last year.
Then on Thursday, Sainsbury's announced a rise in third-quarter sales of 4.5%. The supermarket giant said sales for its online home delivery service had grown by 27% over the quarter, taking a record number of orders in the week before Christmas.
Earlier in the week the Co-op announced that they had achieved like-for-like growth, excluding fuel, of 6 per cent in the three weeks to January 3, helped by strong sales of beer, wine and spirits, soft drinks, seasonal lines and fresh food.
Results from Tesco, Asda and Morrison will be available shortly and it will be interesting to see how well they fared in the Christmas battle.
Although the country is in recession we obviously kept enough money back to splurge on food and drink. These early trading results suggest that the British love affair with Marks and Spencer has come to an end. But if it's just about price, why has Waitrose done so well when they are also one of the more up-market supermarkets?
Did you visit a different supermarket for your 2008 Christmas grocery shopping? If so, were you fully satisfied with the quality of the food, and will you make the switch a permanent one?
Waitrose, who also had a record day on 23 December, benefited from a "late shopping surge" in the last three days before Christmas with a 12% rise in like-for-like sales compared with the same period last year.
Then on Thursday, Sainsbury's announced a rise in third-quarter sales of 4.5%. The supermarket giant said sales for its online home delivery service had grown by 27% over the quarter, taking a record number of orders in the week before Christmas.
Earlier in the week the Co-op announced that they had achieved like-for-like growth, excluding fuel, of 6 per cent in the three weeks to January 3, helped by strong sales of beer, wine and spirits, soft drinks, seasonal lines and fresh food.
Results from Tesco, Asda and Morrison will be available shortly and it will be interesting to see how well they fared in the Christmas battle.
Although the country is in recession we obviously kept enough money back to splurge on food and drink. These early trading results suggest that the British love affair with Marks and Spencer has come to an end. But if it's just about price, why has Waitrose done so well when they are also one of the more up-market supermarkets?
Did you visit a different supermarket for your 2008 Christmas grocery shopping? If so, were you fully satisfied with the quality of the food, and will you make the switch a permanent one?
