Production · Holland code RC

Food and Tobacco Roasting, Baking, and Drying Machine Operators and Tenders

Operate or tend food or tobacco roasting, baking, or drying equipment, including hearth ovens, kiln driers, roasters, char kilns, and vacuum drying equipment.

Also called: Coffee Roaster, Machine Operator, Roaster, Roasterman, Bean Roaster, Line Operator, Oven Operator, Oven Technician.

O*NET 51-3091.00

At a glance

US median annual pay: $44,810; Middle half earn $37,540 to $50,680. BLS OEWS, May 2025.
Most common education: High School Diploma or the equivalent (such as a GED); 61% of workers surveyed by O*NET report this level.
Preparation needed: Job Zone 2 of 5; Some preparation. Zone 1 is little or none; zone 5 is graduate-level.

What the work involves

The tasks workers in this occupation rate as most important, from the O*NET survey.

Observe, feel, taste, or otherwise examine products during and after processing to ensure conformance to standards.
Take product samples during or after processing for laboratory analyses.
Set temperature and time controls, light ovens, burners, driers, or roasters, and start equipment, such as conveyors, cylinders, blowers, driers, or pumps.
Observe temperature, humidity, pressure gauges, and product samples and adjust controls, such as thermostats and valves, to maintain prescribed operating conditions for specific stages.
Observe flow of materials and listen for machine malfunctions, such as jamming or spillage, and notify supervisors if corrective actions fail.
Test products for moisture content, using moisture meters.
Record production data, such as weight and amount of product processed, type of product, and time and temperature of processing.
Weigh or measure products, using scale hoppers or scale conveyors.

Skills and knowledge it leans on

Skills

Monitoring3.5 / 5
Reading Comprehension3.1 / 5
Active Listening3.1 / 5
Critical Thinking3.1 / 5
Speaking3.0 / 5
Writing2.9 / 5

Knowledge areas

Production and Processing3.6 / 5
English Language3.3 / 5
Public Safety and Security3.0 / 5
Food Production3.0 / 5
Mathematics2.3 / 5
Education and Training2.3 / 5

Importance ratings on O*NET’s 1 to 5 scale. Higher means the occupation depends on it more.

Who tends to enjoy it

How strongly this occupation draws on each of the six Holland interest types, which is the same profile the career interests test compares you against.

Realistic98
Investigative10
Artistic2
Social4
Enterprising14
Conventional53

The same work abroad

Other countries classify jobs differently, so these are the closest matches through the international ISCO-08 standard, not exact equivalents.

European occupation titles (ESCO)

curing room worker · DE Mitarbeiter im Trocknungsraum/Mitarbeiterin im Trocknungsraum · FR ouvrier d’atelier de séchage du tabac/ouvrière d’atelier de séchage du tabac
wood drying kiln operator · DE Bediener von Holztrocknungsanlagen/Bedienerin von Holztrocknungsanlagen · FR opérateur de séchoirs à bois/opératrice de séchoirs à bois
coffee roaster · DE Kaffeeröster/Kaffeerösterin · FR préposé à la torréfaction du café/préposée à la torréfaction du café
dryer attendant · DE Trocknerbediener/Trocknerbedienerin · FR préposé au séchoir/préposée au séchoir
malt kiln operator · DE Malzofenbediener/Malzofenbedienerin · FR opérateur de touraillage du malt/opératrice de touraillage du malt
cacao bean roaster · DE Kakaobohnenröster/Kakaobohnenrösterin · FR préposé à la torréfaction des fèves de cacao/préposée à la torréfaction des fèves de cacao

Closest UK occupation groups (SOC 2020)

Food, drink and tobacco process operatives (8111)129,900 employed
Process operatives n.e.c. (8119)26,300 employed
Butchers (5431)21,300 employed

Employment is the UK Annual Population Survey for April 2025 to March 2026, all workers in the group, which can be broader than this one occupation.

Pay across Europe, for the whole group

Median annual earnings of all employees in “Plant and machine operators and assemblers”. This is the broad ISCO group this occupation falls in, not the occupation itself, so treat it as context for the wage level, not as a salary for this job.

Median annual earnings, Plant and machine operators and assemblers, by country
Country	Median pay
Belgium	€39,630
Netherlands	€37,567
Austria	€37,304
Sweden	€36,005
Germany	€34,433
Ireland	€32,617
France	€28,550
Italy	€28,330
Spain	€24,409
Portugal	€11,309
Poland	€10,259

Eurostat Structure of Earnings Survey, businesses with ten or more employees outside public administration, in euro and not adjusted for the cost of living. Reference years differ between sources: the US, Japan and Europe figures on this page come from different survey years, so compare them as rough levels, not to the euro or yen.

Exposure to AI

This occupation sits in the lower third of the 774 occupations scored, with an exposure score of -0.76. The scores are standardized across those occupations, so 0 is the average and a score of 1 is about one standard deviation above it.

Our note on reading it: the dataset links AI applications to the abilities that occupations require, so the score reflects overlap between the two. It is a comparison between occupations, not a forecast about jobs. It does not say whether exposure means tasks are replaced or workers get more done with the tools, and it says little about one employer or one role.

Source: Felten, E., Raj, M., & Seamans, R. (2021). Occupational, industry, and geographic exposure to artificial intelligence: A novel dataset and its potential uses. Strategic Management Journal, 42(12), 2195-2217. Matched to this page by 6-digit SOC code (51-3091).

Is it a fit for you?

Interest is one input, alongside ability, pay and what is hiring near you. The career interests test takes about thirteen minutes and ranks occupations by how closely their profile matches yours.

Take the career interests test