Careers in the Food Industry

Many people are passionate about food. So passionate that they decide that they want to make a career out of it. While there are many different types of career options for someone who wants to work in the food industry, we've highlighted a few that we think might catch your attention.

Chef

This one would be difficult not to mention when talking about careers in the food industry. Chefs can come from all different backgrounds. Many go through extensive training at culinary schools, where competition can be pretty tough. Many other chefs find ways to make it on their own with little external training, or learning from a mentor. Depending on the type of chef that you want to become, you may want to consider some form of culinary school from a respected institution.

Waiters/Waitress

Many people who start a job as a waiter or a waitress will often find themselves to be great at their job and they keep finding new opportunities to expand and develop their skill set. A talented waiter or waitress will need to understand everything the restaurant or food venue offers and should be able to make food and beverage recommendations based on a customer's needs. They also need to be able to communicate very effectively with chefs or anyone preparing food, as they will be the ones held responsible for the quality of the food served. While many waiters or waitresses learn from experience, many aspiring waiters or waitresses can attend hospitality schools to make themselves stand out from others on the market.

Food Quality Specialist

If you ever wonder how your food and beverages are consistently safe for you to consume, then you should thank a food quality specialist. They are responsible for making sure that food and beverages are safe to consume something as small as a restaurant chain to a region of the United States. There are plenty of positions available at the moment. Just go to a job search site like Foodsafetyrecruiter.com and use their job search tool for finding a job opening in your regional area.

Hospitality Manager

From deciding the structure of a menu for a restaurant, to how a food venue may be set up and designed, a hospitality manager will be in charge of a great deal of items related to the food service of a business or an organization. Hospitality managers are often found in hotels but will work in any environment that prides itself on providing excellent customer service as well as food or beverages.

The Importance of Cleaning Produce

(Photo credit: Wikipedia)

As a little kid, I loved fruits and vegetables. If you put an apple and a piece of cake in front of me, I’d go for the healthy option, which seems crazy, especially in today’s society. Since I would often help myself to fruits and vegetables, my mom always made sure that she has clean produce readily available. As I grew up, she showed me how she would clean the produce and cut it if necessary, which I have continued to do over the years, but I don’t think I ever really understood the importance of cleaning produce until recently.

Up until yesterday, cleaning my fruits and vegetables was something I did because my mom taught me to. I always knew that fruits and vegetables may have pesticides on them. After reading and article about the most commonly contaminated produce, which you can read here, I started to be more selective when it came to what I bought. But pesticides are just one reason why it is important to clean your produce, as well as make it important for homes to have a deionized water system, such as these, though.

Aside from the fact that a lot of produce come in contact with pesticides, I never really thought about how many germs are on the fruit and vegetables from other people's hands before I bought them. I understand that the produce needs to be packaged, shipped, and displayed in order to be bought, but how many other shoppers touch the produce before you are the one to buy it. I will admit that I have always been very selective about the produce I buy and am guilty of putting items back if I don’t think they are the best quality. I’m guessing I’m not the only person that does this either, making it very likely that multiple people have gotten their hands on the produce you are bringing home, and who knows where their hands have been! Ewwww, it makes me cringe so be sure to always clean your produce when you bring them home! 

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How Environmental Services Help Businesses

Ever wonder what’s going to happen to that abandoned warehouse in your neighborhood, or who’s going to turn that gas station that went out of business into a new and thriving business that will give back to the local community? Environmental Consulting businesses provide a vital step in helping new business owners reclaim old and potentially hazardous land and make good use out of it. Here’s how it all begins.

When a business or bank realizes that there’s a high potential that the area they’re investing in could be contaminated, they hire an environmental consulting firm to conduct a Phase I Environmental Site Assessment. An example of a business that does that can be found here. Once the firm conducts a series of groundbreaking tests on the property, they can report back to all the stakeholders to identify what risks are present and the costs of repairing or cleaning the property.

These assessments give banks and businesses a clear and accurate picture of what they may be getting themselves into, and it helps promote business growth in areas where no business activity was seen to be possible.

Myrtle Beach: Adventurous Eco-tours

Eco-tourism. It’s a buzzword making its way into our vacation vocabulary. But what exactly is eco-tourism? Put simply: eco-tourism is traveling responsibly to natural areas and environments. It also can tie into both cultural and historical tourism, as it encourages the preservation of cultures and environments. Myrtle Beach is one of the best vacation spots in the world to discover this experience. There’s plenty to learn about the wildlife there as well as the history of the culture that began developing there long ago. The best part is that you can enjoy all of these adventures in total comfort. Just put on your most comfy clothes and get out into the fresh air. Feel the perfect combination of the ocean breeze and the sun on your face as you explore all that the nature of Myrtle Beach has to offer.

One fun way to explore the coast of Myrtle Beach is go to deep within the winding creeks, rivers and marshes that run off the ocean. Kayak tours are a great way to get exercise, observe nature and have some quality family fun all at the same time! One great river to explore is the Waccamaw River. It looks a bit different than most rivers, as it’s called a “black water river”. You’ll pass under majestic cypress trees and beautiful, native birds. And lurking in the water are small crocodiles and snakes, so you’re sure to have some close, but safe encounters!

Another fun, but different way to get a good look at the wildlife of Myrtle Beach (assuming you want real wild life and not a more commercial Myrtle Beach wildlife experience) is to take a safari Jeep tour. If you’re leery of the water and would rather be driven around in a super cool Jeep, this option is the one for you! You’ll be educated on the nature, ecology, history, wildlife and even the ghost lore along a wide range of environments, from old farm plantations to the coast, to rivers and to historic structures. You’ll see alligators and a variety of bird species as you journey through the tour with your expert tour guide. You’ll also visit a graveyard and hear great stories about the most haunted spots in Myrtle Beach. And you’ll even get to visit the coasts where pirates once dominated, while also learning about the salt marsh.

Plainwell Michigan

How would you feel about living in a town that had just a little over 8000 people? Well that is about how many people live in Plainwell Michigan. I think that it would be amazingly fun to live in a small town. I didn't lived in a fairly small town in Rhode Island while I was growing up. It was nice to have friends always close by. I remember when I went to high school and they merged the two middle schools and I felt like I was meeting a whole new world. Small towns do have their advantage. Especially if your children play sports. I wasn't an amazing softball or basketball player but I was always on every all-star and traveling sports team. The funny thing was we always had fairly decent teams. So if you are into sports and you want to get noticed move to a small town and shine.

If you're interested in learning more about Michigan, take a look at these Michigan resources on the web.

Stopping A Dog From Licking A Wound?

Last week, my Jack Russell got pretty torn up in a dog fight and most of his cuts and bruises have healed up pretty nicely.  Except one on the back of his neck, our littlest dog will NOT leave it alone.  Woobie just keeps picking and picking at Jack’s cut, and I fear it’ll never heal.

At a loss for what to do to keep him away from it, my husband’s solution this morning when he called was to tie something around Jack’s neck to keep the other dogs from picking at it.  So I tried:  I tied one of my husband’s old bandannas around his neck.  He doesn’t seem to mind it, and had not picked at it at all – But it hasn’t stopped Woobie from trying to lick his neck, he just slides it down far enough to get at the cut.

I’m running out of ideas here.  I can’t constantly carry Jack around with me, he’s too dang heavy and squirmy.  And I can’t keep them all crated all the time, nor do I have anywhere to separate them.  So I’m asking – Does anyone know how to keep dogs from licking wounds? I've heard there are some herbal supplements that may work, but I'm wary of using them.

I fear if it doesn’t start looking better soon – he’s going to have to make a trip to the vet, in which I’ll get a lecture for not bringing him in sooner…  Hmm… maybe if I actually liked my vet, I wouldn’t try to avoid him.

What You Should Eat

There's a few things you should eat that can help support healthy function in the heart, liver, digestive tract, and the immune system in addition to also helping to improve mood and to combat fatigue.

A healthy diet should include the proper servings of vegetables and fruits. In today's world this is not always possible. Finding a nice supplement can provide you with a vegetable rich, well balanced diet. They usually include natural ingredients such as amino acids, vitamins, enzymes, probiotics and minerals that are just too hard to find in an everyday diet.
Here are some ingredients that you should look for when picking a nutritional supplement:

Lecithin: helps maintain healthy heart function.

Barley Grass: helps the digestive system stay healthy.

Barley Malt: maintain proper bacterial colonization of the colon.

Hawaiian Spirulina Pacifica (HSP:): helps maintain the immune system.

Wheat Grass: helps maintain a healthy mind.

Alfalfa Grass: promotes healthy liver function, constipation, body and breath odor in addition to supporting the circulatory and respiratory systems.

Bee Pollen: helps strengthen the immune system, combat fatigue, improves moods, and supports colon health.

Acerola Berry Juice: antioxidant properties help maintain the skin and support the liver.

This may not be enough for you to maintain a healthy diet. Talk with your doctor about how you currently eat, which may be a bigger issue.

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