The European Commission support for the production of this publication does not constitute

endorsement of the contents which reflects the views only of the authors, the commission

cannot be held responsible for any use which may be made of the information contained therein.

Recommendations to close the gaps

between demands from the dairy industry and supply from dairy educational institutions

Written by: Maria-Christina Sørensen, Arla Foods amba., Denmark, Morten Arendt Rasmussen, University of Copenhagen, Denmark, Metin Guldas, Bursa Uludag University, Turkey, Isabel Sande Frandsen, Foreningen af mejeriledere og funktionærer (FMF), Denmark.

Contributions from: Han Zuidema (VHL Univrsity of Applied Sciences), The Netherlands, Thierry Michelet (Association Française des Diplômés de l’Industrie Laitière (AFDIL), France, Torsten Sach, Zentralverband Deutscher Milchwirtschaftler (ZDM), Germany, Marcin Preidl, Zentralverband Deutscher Milchwirtschaftler (ZDM), Germany.

Published October 2019

Executive Summary . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5Introduction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5EU is the largest dairy producer world-wide . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5

Project Results and Recommendations . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6Dairy skills . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12The uniqueness of the dairy production industry . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12High level of core dairy proficiency . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13Educational programmes need to be future proof . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 14The need for business understanding and leadership skills . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 14On dairy skills, we recommend . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 16

Digital skills . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 16Pilot plants and dairy teachers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 18Data analysis and troubleshooting . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19For upskilling on digital skills, we recommend . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20

Green Skills . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20For boosting green skills in dairy education, we recommend . . . . . . . . . . . . . 23

Work Based Learning . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 23Dairy production is a still a craft . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 24Pilot plants . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 25Upskilling of teachers and mentors . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 26To perform better with work-based learning, we recommend . . . . . . . . . . . . . 26

Management Skills . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 27Educational curricula adjustments . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 29Based on above we recommend . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 29For master’s level education, we recommend . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 29

Recruitment . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 29Attracting and retaining employees . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 29Recruitment to dairy educations . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 30To enhance recruitment to the dairy industry, we recommend . . . . . . . . . . . . 31To increase enrollment to dairy educations, we recommend . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 31References . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 32

Contents

Executive SummaryThe EU Erasmus+ (KA-2) project entitled “Mapping Skills needs and Supply in Dairy Sector” was star-

ted on 15.12.2016 and will be finalized on 31.01.2020. This is a project which has been conducted

under the management of the Association of European Dairy Industry Learning1 (AEDIL) that is one of

the major networks of EU Dairy Industry Learning.

The aim of the project was on one hand to map the skills needs for the European dairy industry in

14 countries at present and future (next five years) and on the other hand match these with the supply

from the dairy educational institutions to identify the gaps between the two. Based on these findings,

recommendations to the dairy sector were elaborated.

The research targeted the industry was conducted in three specific areas: dairy skills, digital skills

and green skills, in addition, future skills were investigated as open questions that mainly gave answers

within the areas of management skills and recruitment.

The most significant need which was identified was recruitment with a percentage near to 80% by

the European dairy industry (small, medium and large dairies). This was followed by dairy skill needs

with approximately 75% as second rank, which is significant as there is a tendency in many countries

to turn dairy education into general food education with the possibility of specializing in dairy. Other

high-ranking skills in demand from the dairy industry are digital skills, business understanding and

food safety skills. All with more than 60%.

The above findings are so significant across the dairy industry, that it is vital to improve curricu-

lums, adapt current levels and opt for better partnerships between the industry and the educational in-

stitutions if the European dairy industry is to keep up with international demands and stay competitive.

Based on the surveys conducted in the EU educational institutions (56), dairy education should re-

main separate from general food science and/or technology education, and in those countries where

there is no specific dairy education, this should be reevaluated.

IntroductionThe EU dairy sector is the second biggest agricultural sector in the EU, representing more than 12%

of total agricultural output. In 2017, European milk farmers produced 170.1 million tonnes of milk2,

97% of which was cows’ milk and 3% milk from ewes, goats and buffalo. While milk is produced

in all member states, farm and herd sizes, yields and types of farming vary widely across Europe,

from free-range farming in Alpine areas to large specialized dairy farms in the north-west and cen-

tre of Europe. Most of the milk produced is delivered to dairies for processing, while the remaining

(~10%) is used in other ways on the farms (consumed, processed, directly marketed or used as

feed). In 2017, about 159 million tons of milk (~93%) were delivered to dairies, where raw milk is

processed into fresh products such as cheese or butter.

There are around 12,000 milk processing plants employing 300,000 people in the EU. The

dairy sector is predominantly organized in cooperatives, which hold a 55% market share. These

cooperatives can be as large as world-leading multinational companies or as small as micro-enter-

prises.

1 https://dairysectorskills.com/om-os/

2 Eurostats Statistics Explained: https://ec.europa.eu/eurostat/statistics-explained/index.php/Milk_and_milk_product_statistics

5

EU is the largest dairy producer world-wideAll 28 Member States produce milk. The composite European Union (EU)-28 is the largest dairy

producer in the world, accounting for 25.2% of the world’s milk production3. Nearly 24 million dairy

cows constituted the EU-28 dairy herd in the EU in 2015. Germany is the largest dairy producing

country in the EU-28, accounting for 4.9% of global milk production with over 4 million dairy cows

followed by France (4.0% of global milk production and 3.7 million dairy cows) and The United

Kingdom (2.3% of global production and 1.8 million dairy cows). These countries are followed by

Poland, the Netherlands, Italy, Spain, Ireland, Denmark, and Romania constituting the top 10 dairy

producing countries in the European Union.

Over a 30-year period from 1983 to 2013, the number of dairy farms decreased by 81% in the

ten (initial) EU Member States. This was accompanied by a gradual decline in the number of dairy

farmers in the EU (-5% a year on average). The number of dairy workers in the EU dairy industry

decreased in parallel to the decrease in production capacity.

The European dairy manufacturing sector is rapidly changing towards more concentrated and

specialized productions with more automated processes. These trends call for a more qualified work-

force for the industry to stay competitive in a demanding market for innovative and sustainable soluti-

ons both at European level, as well as at a global level. On the other hand, the educational institutions

do not move at the same speed as the industry, which means that the gaps between what skills the

industry demands and what the dairy schools supply will increase if not cared for in due time.

Project Results and RecommendationsDuring the winter and autumn of 2018, a consortium composed of 11 dairy sector partners cove-

ring 14 European countries interviewed 117 dairy plants, 56 educational institutions (VET-level, col-

lege-level and university degree), and 65 ex-students. The governance body of this EU Erasmus+

funded Sector Skills Alliances project is Association of European Dairy Industry Learning (AEDIL),

which has 15 member countries. The objective of the project was to identify i) the demand for skills

from the dairy industry now and in 5 years’ time, and ii) the actual skills delivery from the educational

institutions, and collectively ascertain the major skills gaps between the two and recommend acti-

ons in this regard. Further, to review and recommend best practices on Work Based Learning (WBL).

The name of the project is Mapping Skills Needs and Supply in the Dairy sector, and the ultimate aim

is to recommend actions to the dairy sector- and educational institutions in the 14 countries speci-

fically, but also at an overall level to other countries that could benefit from the results and recom-

mendations, as well as for the EU Skills Panorama, which gathers data, information and intelligence

on skill needs in countries, occupations and sectors across EU Member States.

The results across the 14 countries identified six major clusters of explicit requirements for ups-

caling of skills or need for action (see Figure 1):

1. Dairy skills

2. Digital skills

3. Green skills

4. Food Safety skills

5. Management (business understanding)

6. Recruitment

3 http://www.europarl.europa.eu/RegData/etudes/BRIE/2018/630345/EPRS_BRI(2018)630345_EN.pdf

6

Europe

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Figure 1. Comparison of dairy skill needs at present (light colored) and future (dark colored) based on the plant size (small < 50 production employees (PE), medium: between 50 and 150 PE and large: > 150 PE)

Food Safety skills, although indicated as a major challenge, is considered to be well covered by the

educational institutions, and hence not an area which needed further recommendations (see figure 2).

Figure 2. Comparison of skill needs (present and future) claimed by the industry (x-axis) with provision of teaching in the subjects as indicated by the educational institutions (y-axis). The purple and blue are Food Safety and Dairy Skills and show that there is no noticeable gap between the two. Industry categories are based on the plant size (small < 50 production employees (PE), medium: between 50 and 150 PE and large: > 150 PE)

In line with what the consortium found during the research, the latest Global CEO Survey (2019)4

conducted by Price Waterhouse Coopers (PWC), indicates that companies worldwide are concer-

ned about the availability of key skills. 35% of the CEO’s indicated this as the third major threat to

the organization’s growth prospects.

Moreover, the lack of key skills was indicated as the one major cause affecting the companies’

ability to innovate effectively by 55% of the respondents (Figure 3).

4 https://www.pwc.com/mu/pwc-22nd-annual-global-ceo-survey-mu.pdf

7

Figure 3. Key skills affecting companies’ ability to innovate effectively, defined by the CEOs.

In order to avert these predictions, a team of dairy experts has interrogated the analyzed data,

reviewed trends from other sectors and the EU’s Centre for Development of Vocational Training

(CEDEFOP) and consulted the dairy sector itself. Based on this work, the team set forth specific

recommendations to the six overall areas identified as needed for action. These initial recommen-

dations were enriched with input from domain experts within green production, digitalization, work-

based learning and recruitment, who shared their experience and knowledge at a conference held

in Luxembourg September 2019.

This document constitutes overall reflections on trends and needs followed by topic specific

recommendations including learning objectives targeted at the relevant educational institutions, as

well as the dairy manufacturing industry.

9

recommend

WE

Dairy skillsThe core dairy skills seem to be well covered generally across the educational institutions that were

interviewed during the Mapping Skills Needs and Supply in the Dairy Sector project. In line with this,

the dairy industry marks dairy skills as highly demanded at their sites, why the educational instituti-

ons should not scale down on the core dairy curricula.

The minimum requirement will be to maintain the level and potentially adjust to a higher level

according to business needs. Further it was stressed that the dairy educations should retain a dairy

focus which to a large extend differentiates the educations from general food and beverage cur-

ricula.

The uniqueness of the dairy production industryThe dairy production industry is characterized by production processes that are highly complex and

require very specific knowledge and skills from employees within the industry. While the raw ma-

terials and ingredients are basically the same across many dairy products, the specific productions

affect the output tremendously and clearly distinguish one product from the other. Milk is obviously

the main ingredient in the dairy production industry, and for the untrained eye milk is just milk, but it

is necessary to understand that this raw ingredient is variable in terms of both chemical and micro-

bial composition, due to seasonal variation, animal breeds, transportation- and storage conditions,

etc. which highly affects the production processes. So, all in all, it requires a lot more knowledge and

skills from employees within the dairy production industry to produce high-quality dairy products

than the ability to follow standardized recipes and operate the production equipment.

For example, cheese technology is a mix of microbiological, enzymology, bio-chemical, physical

knowledge and practices which needs time, numerous pedagogical activities and experiences to be

fully mastered. Further, raw material variations, production automatization, fulfillment of food secu-

rity standards and the evolution of relevant scientific knowledge (milk, proteins, coagulating agents,

lactic bacteria, ripening flora, etc.) increase the complexity of such a production It is absolutely

necessary to i) maintain specific curricula/diploma within dairy, ii) keep developing work-based

learning at dairy colleges and universities, and iii) continue the lifelong learning for employees

within the dairy production industry and at colleges and universities to ensure that the dairy

production industry is competitive and sustainable in the future.

In Denmark the dairy production industry is strongly rooted in the cooperative movement of the

1880’s where small farmers joined forces in small cooperatives and invested in shared production

equipment which allowed them to produce and sell dairy products at a larger scale. The newborn

dairy production industry needed specific skills to further develop and grow, and in the 1890’s the

first dairy technologists went through formal training in Denmark. The dairy technologist program-

me in Denmark has celebrated its 125th birthday and it is in many ways stronger than ever before.

In Denmark the dairy production industry insists that dairy production is vitally different from other

food production and the very specific and in some ways narrow content and profile of the dairy

technologist programme has been protected. This also means that the Danish dairy production in-

dustry holds a unique position because of the high level of dairy skills among the workforce.

In Germany the dairy education was created exclusively to meet the specific needs of the dai-

ries. As such, the dairy educations in Germany offer two different educations at EQF level 4: Dairy

Technologist and Dairy Laboratory Assistant. For both professions, state-regulated training opportu-

nities are provided at EQF level 6. These are: Dairy Master; Dairy Laboratory Master and State-cer-

tified Dairy and Laboratory Technician. Furthermore, a dual programme provided by the university

and the dairy industry in conjunction, provides the possibility of a special higher dairy education

12

at EQF level 7. For all interviewed German dairies, it is absolutely essential to sustain this exclusive

education system to guarantee the high level of dairy skills in German dairies.

High level of core dairy proficiencyThis pattern of a high level of core dairy proficiency is acknowledged across dairies European-wide.

It is beyond doubt that the proud traditions of French dairy production are also strongly connected

to the many dairy technologist colleges which are spread across the country allowing students

to specialize within the production of specific French cheese products such as Brie, Camembert,

Roquefort etc.

UK dairy industry, nowadays, has 13.000 active dairy farmers with a yearly production of 14

billion liters milk. Parallel to this, a significant level of skilled dairy staff is needed. Similar to other

European countries, it is a unique industry that has unique dairy products known world-wide, such

as cheddar cheese. In the UK dairy industry, about 23.000 people are employed at processing sites

around the country. On top of that, dairy farms employ 50,000 more people, both directly and in

supporting industries. In the UK the dairy industry has joined forces to develop a dairy technologist

programme to meet the needs for dairy skills across the industry. Over the past years it has become

evident that it is necessary to make sure that there is a long-term commitment from both the indu-

stry and the colleges. A new viable educational programme however requires many resources to

e.g. define target groups, develop learning content, recruit teachers with the required skills, build

training facilities and reach a critical mass of students.

The Netherlands is another unique country in terms of dairy production. It has a number of

specific globally known dairy products such as Edam and Gouda cheeses. Compared to previous

times, in spite of the decrease in the number of dairy farms, the modern stables that have a livestock

capacity of up to 1.000 heads, have been upgraded; and the average number of cattle per farm

(7-fold) and milk yield (17 times) have increased. It is a country that has own dairy cow breed called

‘Dutch Friesian’. The Netherlands has many vocational education institutions at several levels up to

adult education like many other European countries.

As a candidate country Turkey is a country with promising potential for high milk production

and animal husbandry. In recent years, milk production and the number of modern and large dairy

enterprises are increasing exponentially. This development increases the demand on trained and

skilled manpower.

Compared to other industries, the dairy production industry is not that large, and over the years

some European countries have been tempted to shut down dairy production-specific educational

programmes or integrate them into broader food production programmes. Over the past years both

the Swedish and the British dairy production industry has suffered from the consequences of such

priorities, and in both countries the dairy production industry has now joined forces to reestablish

or develop new educational programmes to ensure the necessary capacity building for the industry.

While the content of dairy education needs a strong dairy focus, such an education, in gene-

ral, creates opportunity of working in a wide range of other industries including food-, beverage-,

pharma- and biotech production. This is clearly evident from the number of employees with a dairy

background occupied in these industries.

It is a clear recommendation of this project to continue to protect the unique character of

educational programmes within dairy technology and production, because it is vital for the dairy

production industry to have dairy skilled employees available. This is also underlined in the intervie-

ws conducted among companies across the industry.

13

Educational programmes need to be future proofThe dairy industry is often portrayed as traditional and old fashioned. Indeed, many of the dairy pro-

ducts found in supermarkets today, have been produced and consumed for many decades. How-

ever, the dairy production sector undergoes constant changes, and many new products are being

developed. This development is due to changing consumer demands, but also due to research and

development activities performed by the industry or academia allowing the dairy production indu-

stry to take advantage of the milk pool in many new ways.

As indicated by the results from the research survey, the dairy production industry is highly di-

verse, ranging from the small one-person company selling hand-crafted products to big, automated

dairy sites. It is required from the educational institutions that their programmes within dairy pro-

duction and technology reflect this diverse industry, but this is rarely the case. It is recommended to

consider whether it is appropriate to rethink the programmes or parts of the programmes due

to the diverse nature of the industry.

Business understanding and leadership skillsThe research survey showed a demand from the industry for employees with better “business un-

derstanding” and “leadership skills”. This should be understood as the need for employees who can

drive the future development of the dairy production industry to keep it contemporary and agile. It

can be argued that many educational institutions are not familiar enough with the new trends, new

products and new production processes characterizing the current dairy industry. This means, that

some companies within the dairy production industry develop their own internal academies, engage

with external providers or in worst case – do not acquire the skills required to drive the development.

Based on the research performed in this project it is therefore highly recommended that the

educational institutions are strengthened when it comes to their ability to integrate new pro-

duct development, new production methods, etc. into the programmes. Dairy programmes at

all levels need to cover subjects such as organic products, sustainability, baby powder, whey

14

protein, and recombination to be future proof. It is beyond doubt that it will require considerable

resources at college and university level to catch up with the development that the dairy production

industry has undergone just within the past 10 years. It is absolutely necessary that teachers are

upskilled, and it is recommended that all teachers spend at least one week every year doing

“internships” within the dairy production industry. Furthermore, it is recommended that the com-

panies within the industry, in connection with the educational institutions contribute to the

upskilling of students.

While it is specifically required that students within dairy production possess dairy specific know-

ledge and skills, it should also be emphasized that there is a need for the programmes to develop

the students’ curiosity, eagerness to learn, critical thinking, pragmatism, and analytical skills.

However, it may well be a joint venture between companies and colleges/universities to develop

such skills. In this regards it should be considered whether companies could be better at upskil-

ling students and employees as part of lifelong learning. Based on experience, we know that not

all companies target and plan their learning activities adequately and we would hence encourage

companies from the dairy production industry to enhance their learning processes to drive

capacity building in the right direction and to the right level. This may well include internal men-

tors, who could improve their personal capabilities of supporting students and colleagues in their

learning processes.

15

On dairy skills, we recommend

1. to maintain a high level in the dairy specific teaching and training at colleges

and universities.

2. to develop a stronger partnership between educational institutions and industry for

leveraging the education on product development, and new technologies. Specifically

using employees from the dairy production industry as instructors/teachers on part

of the curricula.

3. that teachers in the educational institutions do yearly internships in the dairy industry

to keep updated.

4. to keep developing work-based learning at dairy colleges and universities.

5. to continue lifelong learning for employees within the dairy production industry

and at colleges and universities.

6. to make the necessary adjustments to existing courses on an ongoing basis to adapt to

the developments within the dairy production industry - e.g. organic products,

sustainability, baby powder, whey protein, and recombination.

7. to review dairy programmes to better reflect the highly diverse dairy production industry,

that varies from small one-person companies selling hand-crafted products to big,

automated dairy sites.

8. to develop student’s curiosity, eagerness to learn, critical thinking, pragmatism,

and analytical skills.

Digital skillsAccording to the World Economic Forum’s prediction on needs for jobs in the future5, 50% of all

jobs are expected to be ‘significantly affected by automation’, and 14% of jobs are at high risk of

automation. This prediction fits well with what we found during the interviews with 117 dairy plants,

regardless of size and product type. 72% of respondents from dairy plants affirmed to have a major

need for digital skills in the very near future. This is more or less the same picture across the 14

countries that participated in the survey, only differing between the different sub-categories of digital

skills (Figure 4). Compared to what level of digital skills - if any - the educational institutions teach in

these categories; the gaps are significant.

5 http://www3.weforum.org/docs/WEF_Future_of_Jobs_2018.pdf

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Figure 4. Digital skill needs indicated by the industry (blue), compared to the delivery on the same skills at the educational institutions (red).

Automation

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Moreover, the results from the survey indicated a need for employees to be able to not only analyze

data, but also being able to troubleshoot based on the analyzed data. This, according to the Euro-

pean Investment Bank’ annual Investment Report6, would be defined as the companies’ need for:

• Analytical Skills

• Problem solving

• Creativity

• Continuous learning

• Communication and social skills

• Digital skills

Employees are already expected to have at least a basic digital proficiency (e.g. full proficiency of

the Office-package), and in technology-intensive sectors, as the dairy manufacturing sector, advan-

ced digital skills will become imperative.

Pilot plants and dairy teachersMany dairy educations have smaller pilot plants in the same premises where the classroom teaching

takes place. This enables the students to apply the theory in a safe setting. However, as the inte-

gration of automation at the dairy plants occurs at a very high speed, the pilot plants at the dairy

schools are rarely adapted to the actual automated level at the dairy plants. Moreover, the teachers -

despite regular internships at the dairy plants - are rarely fully updated on the state of art production

systems. In the Netherlands, the Van Hall Larenstein University recently invested 5 M in a fully auto-

mated pilot plant, which enables to work the whole dairy process at a small scale. This investment,

6 https://www.eib.org/en/publications/investment-report-2018

18

however, was only possible through a cooperation between the provincial government, the industry,

and the university, that all provided a third of the necessary funds.

Based on the above, it is recommended to enhance the cooperation between dairy schools

and dairy plants to provide funds to upgrade existing pilot plants, to tighten the commitment

between the two in order to ensure a greater flow of teachers’ internships at the automated

dairy plants, and with the aim of ensuring the students’ are exposed to fully automated processes

during their internships.

Furthermore, the dairy educations should integrate automation much more in all relevant

topics, at least at the level of providing the basics of understanding automation. This also requi-

res an investment in upgrading dairy teachers on how to integrate automation. An add-on to this

recommendation is for vocational educational training colleges (VET’s) and universities to team

up with more experienced teachers from other industries, for example, Industrial Operators,

Automation Engineers, and Process Operators, in order to upgrade dairy teachers on automation.

Alternatively, automation-related courses should be included in the curriculums to reduce the

gaps partly.

At the strictly digital proficiency level, it is recommendable to ensure access to teaching in the

Office-package as a supplementary subject for those students, who do not have the full proficien-

cy when commencing the dairy education, and then make digitalization an integrated part of all

teaching methods.

Data analysis and troubleshootingA major request from the dairy industry, was their employees’ ability to analyze relevant data, and be

able to troubleshoot based on these data. This is a skill lacking from the educational institutions, and

hence constitutes a need for upskilling of employees at dairy plants. In some countries, there are

external providers of upskilling in digital skills targeted the dairy industry. A recommendation is to

identify upskilling providers in automation and industrial IT, in order to access tailored upskilling

courses for relevant staff.

As a specific learning objective, dairy schools are recommended to teach statistics and sta-

tistical process control - and the understanding of these data, as well as the fundamentals of

System Applications and Product for data processing (SAP).

Furthermore, a recommendation is to enhance the cooperation between dairy educations

and companies on digital competences. One way to do this could be to facilitate short student

internship in the dairy industry, where the students should work along with process operators

(job-shadowing) to recognize the instrumentation: how the process operators handle instrumentati-

on when data analysis shows that something should be changed in the process.

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For upskilling on digital skills, we recommendEnhancing the cooperation between dairy schools and dairy plants:

1. to provide funds to upgrade existing pilot plants.

2. to tighten the commitment between the two to ensure a great flow of teachers’

internships at the automated dairy plants

3. to ensure students are exposed to fully automated processes during their internships.

4. to ensure students have job shadowing focusing on instrumentation.

5. to identify upskilling providers in automation and industrial IT.

Improvements in curriculums and course dimensions:

1. for VET’s and universities to team up with more experienced teachers from such careers

as e.g. Industrial Operators, Automation Engineers and Process Operators, to upgrade

dairy teachers on automation.

2. for dairy educations to provide basic teaching in the Office-package as

a supplementary subject.

3. to make digitalization an integrated part of all teaching methods.

4. to integrate automation in relevant topics – at least as the basics of understanding

automation.

5. to increase cooperation among dairy plants to identify providers of upskilling in dairy

automation and industrial IT to access tailored upskilling courses for relevant staff.

6. to provide specific teaching in statistics and statistical process control, as well as the

understanding of these data.

7. to provide specific teaching in the fundamentals of SAP (System Applications and

Product for data processing).

Green SkillsTo a large extend all dairy plants interviewed, regardless of size and production type, expect to have

increasing demand for green skills now and in the very near future. When asked why the dairies

demand green skills? the answers vary, but three answers are predominant:

• Legislation / regulation

• Environmental concern

• Economy

Legislation affecting dairy operation is quite well covered by the educational institutions in a third

part of the surveyed countries (Denmark, Finland, Ireland, Sweden and Turkey), whereas the other

two-thirds perform poorly on teaching in environmental regulation and legislation. Bearing in mind

the importance of these areas to the dairy plants, we recommend the educational institutions to

develop, or scale up on existing legislation courses to be contemporary with respect to envi-

ronmental concerns and legislation, and to furthermore add as learning goals; the capacity to con-

20

duct an ‘environmental risk assessment’ in connection with ISO 14001 (Environmental Management

Systems) as well as food safety management systems in connection with ISO 22000 (Food Safety

Management Systems).

Environmental concerns in the survey were especially focused on renewable energy and the

reuse of natural resources, such as water and energy. Furthermore, the demand for sustainable

packaging including recycling of packaging materials is in increasing demand by the dairy plants.

However, according to the interviewees, it is not necessarily dairy educated employees who should

perform on all parameters of green skills. Some areas - as for example - sustainable packaging

should lie with environmental engineers, rather than dairy engineers or dairy technicians. However,

a minimum understanding of the importance of sustainable packaging is recommended to

include in dairy education.

The overall concern for reduction and reuse of energy (how to optimally heat-treat, optimize

cooling, etc.), reduction and reuse of water (how to reduce the water use during e.g. cleaning, how

to reuse water from production, etc.) is of utmost importance to the dairy industry - and to the cli-

mate agenda.

In the survey only Finland, Ireland and Poland perform relatively well on the teaching in these

subjects, hence, a clear recommendation to the educational institutions is to have a greater

focus on the environment as a cross-cutting concern in all relevant subjects. These subjects

include dairy skills generally, dairy processing, dairy technology, dairy cleaning, and dairy material

science. In addition, more attention should be given to the subjects including environmen-

tal impact assessment, assessment of future resource availability, improvement of climate

resilience as well as technologies, products and processes to minimize carbon emissions.

When teaching core dairy subjects, we recommend to be aware of how this is connected to

green skills. For instance, a plate heat exchanger for heat treatment reuses the energy, and as such

is a green technology established well before this became an agenda. For this part, we recommend

establishing a guide covering the link between existing dairy subjects and green skills.

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The economy in connection with green skills is tightly connected to the issues given above (e.g.

reduction in water and energy use). However, more specific requests were raised from the newly

graduated dairy professionals. Namely, how to encounter with ‘the real world’ after graduating expli-

citly expressed as ‘business models with green agenda at the core, as well as recycling in regard to

packaging’. In line with the previous findings and recommendations, it is recommended that dairy

educational institutions teach business models with a green agenda including the significant

subjects such as environmental impact assessment, technologies, products and processes to mini-

mize carbon emissions, etc.

For boosting green skills in dairy education, we recommend

• To establish a guide covering the link between existing dairy subjects and green skills.

• Integrate environmental concern as a cross-cutting concern in all relevant subjects

including dairy skills generally, dairy processing, dairy technology, dairy cleaning and

dairy material science.

• Adjust existing legislation courses to be updated with respect to environmental legislation

and regulations.

• Incorporate- and be able to conduct an “environmental risk assessment” as an identified

learning objective in connection with ISO 14001 and ISO 22000 either as parts of existing

courses or new courses.

• Teach how to elaborate business models with a green agenda - including:

1. environmental impact assessment.

2. knowledge of technologies, products and processes to minimize carbon emissions.

3. assessment of future resource availability

4. improvement of climate resilience

5. reduction and reuse of water

6. reduction and reuse of energy

Work Based LearningThe project has previously published a report with Recommendations on Work Based Learning from

the Dairy Industry. The report holds a collection of 10 examples of best practices from the sector.

In the report different approaches to Work Based learning is depicted. Among the most used are:

mentorship; internship; school based enterprise; apprenticeship; cooperative education & Business

and Industry Field Trip.

The report reflects the fact that across the European countries that are member of AEDIL, there

is a myriad of different ways of working with work-based learning. In many countries work-based

learning is an integrated part of the dairy education typically in the form of one or more internships

during the education. Furthermore, many dairy companies have their own training programmes for

newly employed dairy personnel, where they do job shadowing, work with a mentor or join a gra-

duate programme that qualifies them for management or specialist positions within the company.

Moreover, the analysis of the data collected by AEDIL members clearly show challenges in the

sector that require rapid upskilling in specific areas like digital skills. These challenges could very

23

well benefit from Work Based Learning, as one of the most efficient ways of upskilling employees,

teachers and trainers.

Dairy production is still a craftDespite the increasing automation of the dairy industry, the industry is still quite labour intensive and

much work is done by operators. In some countries the majority of operators are unskilled workers

who mainly perform rather simple manual tasks. However, in several countries, skilled dairy techno-

logists are very important in creating value within dairy production. Skilled dairy technologists can

be considered as craftsmen. The features of a craft have previously been described by MacQueen

(1951)7 as:

– Familiarity with the raw materials

– Knowledge of working techniques

– Skills in the use of tools and equipment

– Knowledge of the necessary science

– Familiarity with related crafts

– Knowledge of industry

– Possession of relevant character qualities and the ability to respond to changing

circumstances

In some European countries there is a strong tradition of passing on craftsmen skills from a master

to a student, but in most European countries teachers at dairy colleges have taken over many of the

tasks previously performed by the master. Dairy technologist programmes has economic advanta-

ges and the theoretical/scientific part of the education is also often strengthened when the teaching

is performed by full-time professional teachers.

However, internships in dairy companies is still a very important part of the training of dairy

technologists and also one of the most commonly used ways of integrating work-based learning in

dairy programmes at both college and university levels. Our recommendation for dairy colleges and

universities that do not use internships as an integrated part of their curriculum is to uncover the

possibilities of integrating internships in their programmes. WBL adds a complementary practical

level to the academic knowledge provided at colleges and universities, and especially core skills on

dairy technology and production is beneficially taught in this way. It is highly important that trainees

and students learn from colleagues within the industry. The dairy industry relies on employees who

possess the craftsman skills because the raw material and production processes necessitates a high

level of hands-on skills.

An overall recommendation is to have much more alignment between the educational insti-

tutions and the industry, to make sure that students perceive their internships as a logical extensi-

on and integrated part of their education. And further, to include several internships with a higher

degree of tailor-made internships at the end of the education to comply with special interest of

the students

To better suit the future demand for skills, it is recommendable that internships integrate some

tasks with green and digital skills, as these skills according to the present research are not well

7 W.M. Macqueen (1951) What is craft skill?, The Vocational Aspect of Secondary and Further Education, 3:6, 34-37 available at: https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/pdf/10.1080/03057875180000031

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covered by the educational institutions. Furthermore, the survey indicates that certain products are

not well covered according to the ex-students, where especially organic products, whey products

and baby formula are lacking attention. Consequently, it is recommendable to identify industry

flagships, I.e. productions sites at the forefront within these technologies, at which internships

can equip students with these specialized skills.

Pilot plants Many colleges and universities that offer dairy programmes have dairy pilot plants or similar training

facilities. The training facilities are instrumental in the training of dairy skills, as they allow trainees

and students to experiment and learn in small scale production. Obviously, the experimentation and

risk of failure is most often impossible to accommodate in a large-scale production in a dairy com-

pany due to costs, obligations to customers etc. However, due to the rapid development in digitali-

zation and automation within the dairy industry, colleges and universities find it hard to ensure that

the training facilities are up to date. It is necessary that the educational institutions keep investing

in their training facilities continuously in order for the dairy programmes to maintain their relevance.

Understandably, costs pose a big challenge for many educational institutions as dairy equip-

ment is expensive. However, it is not an option to phase out training facilities and pilot plants, and

therefore it is recommended that flexible and innovative solutions are found in the individual

member countries to provide the necessary funds to keep training facilities up do date. This is

considered to be a responsibility shared between the public educational institutions, the dairy com-

panies as well as the equipment vendors. In the Netherlands the fully automated 5 M worth pilot

plant at the Van Hall Larenstein University is an example of such a joint effort and to be considered

a hallmark for best practice in establishment and maintaining pilot plants for an agile education.

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Upskilling of teachers and mentorsAntonio Ranieri, Head of Department for Learning and Employability of Cedefop, has previously

emphasized that ‘the quality and effectiveness of education and training cannot exceed the quality

of teachers and trainers’. Due to the rapid development of the dairy industry, there is a strong need

for developing the competences of teachers on an ongoing basis. So, a recommendation is to focus

on the constant upskilling of teachers and trainers. To keep up with the developments of the da-

iry industry, it is recommendable that teachers do yearly internships in the dairy industry to be

updated on new technologies, product development and ways of working at the dairy plants.

Another way of assuring the upskilling of teachers and trainers would be to make arrangements

with external providers of dairy technology. A recommendation is to map such possibilities both

on a national as well as on a pan-European level to create a training academy with highest level of

training courses.

Focus should also be given to mentors at the dairy plants. An incentive for the mentors to be more

engaged in their mentorship, would be to heighten their status at the dairies. Furthermore, mentors

should receive training in mentoring and coaching skills, and be better equipped with different le-

arning styles.

To perform better with work-based learning, we recommend

• Teachers and trainers should have continuous upskilling at dairy plants to be

on top of newest developments.

• Establish a pan-European training academy with training courses for teachers and

trainers of such quality that they are validated at national level.

• For dairy programmes that do not already provide internships or apprenticeships as

an integrated part of their curriculum, we recommend integrating work-based learning.

• Greater alignment between educational institutions and the industry:

• To ensure the quality and relevance of the internships.

• To integrate some of the elements where the biggest gaps were identified between the

demand for skills from the industry and the supply of such skills from the educational

institutions. Primarily focus on digital skills, green skills and special product skills as

organic products, whey products and baby formula.

• To provide more individual and customized training at the dairies according

to the actual education or choice of specialization of the student.

• Mentors at the dairy plants should receive training in mentoring and coaching skills

to be better equipped with different learning styles.

• Identify industry flagships at the forefront within organic products, whey products and

baby formula, where internships can equip students with specialized skills.

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Management SkillsIn general, the analysis highlights management skills as an important competence for the dairy indu-

stry now and in the future. Specifically, the demanded management skills are split into two categories:

1. Management skills related to production management including LEAN, supply chain under-

standing, including primary production as well as consumer demands and company structure

including the relation between production, marketing, development etc.

2. Management skills related to leading a team of employees in production as well as projects.

This, including personal relations, team dynamics and one on one coaching.

Based on the skills related to the first category, we recommend as learning objectives for vocational

/ bachelor level dairy education:

• Have knowledge of supply chain, including being able to forecast how changes in milk

availability and prices affects the dairy production.

• Know LEAN as a tool for production management, including being able to use LEAN skills in

practical problem solving in a production for e.g. root cause analysis and production

optimization.

Further, on a master level education in dairy science and technology, two additional recommenda-

tions for learning objectives are envisioned:

• Have knowledge of consumer trends and values related to green economy, climate change,

animal welfare, health, GMO and organic production, and understand how such factors

impact the dairy business.

• Have knowledge of the milk market ontology and economy, including business structures

for cooperatives and private companies.

The second category related to people management: all larger dairy companies have dedicated

programmes for employee upskilling, targeting exactly these skills, which are timely placed pro-

grammes for junior managers, developing their people management skill set in parallel to such skills

being directly used in their work as managers. We believe, that curricula targeting this subject during

a school or university education is timely misplaced and will be perceived irrelevant or too abstract.

For these reasons we acknowledge the need for focus on those skills but recommend the industry

as such to revisit their programmes based on the industry demands raised here and recommend no

actions in this regard for the educational institutions.

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Educational curricula adjustments

Based on above we recommend

• Update the learning objectives within existing courses on e.g. Production and Unit

Operations to include LEAN as a tool for controlling individual unit operations,

troubleshooting problems as well as production optimization.

• Include business understanding (here in the form of supply chain) on existing courses

covering farmside milk production or milk as raw material.

For master’s level education, we recommend

• Integrate subjects aaddressing dairy and society covering historical and contemporary

consumer trends, in terms of what initiates such changes and how it impacts the dairy industry

• Teaching in the milk market ontology and economy, including business structures for

cooperatives and private companies.

RecruitmentRecruitment was identified as one of the overall concerns of most dairy plants interviewed. Even

when ‘recruitment’ as such was not part of the survey, and hence no specific questions were asked

to this area, it was raised as a major future challenge.

Attracting and retaining employeesRecruitment was identified as a qualitative concern as well as a quantitative concern. Dairy plants

find it difficult not only to attract people with the right qualifications, but also to attract abundant

number of employees. Furthermore, the dairy plants face challenges retaining qualified employees

- some due to natural causes as retirement - but others because of better working conditions and/

or better salaries in other sectors, as for example the ingredients- or pharmaceutical industry. Many

young people have an ambition of a balanced work-family life, which do not fit well with traditional

positions at dairy manufacturing plants that work with 12-hours shifts for example.

A recommendation to recruitment of qualified dairy personnel would be for the dairy plants to

be more aware of the actual values of the people they want to attract. The younger generations

are generally more value-based in their choices, so future employers should appeal to these values

in job openings. Furthermore, to be aware of national labour regulation to explore the possibility

of flexible working hours that fit with family life. Older generations seem to still have a preference

for well-paid and stable jobs, which should then be the main focus of the dairy plants’ recruitment

strategy.

A recommendation to retain good dairy employees, would be to explore national labour

regulation and adapt where possible flexible working conditions, that would enable the older

generation to stay at the labour market a little longer.

A recommendation to the dairies to ensure enough qualified dairy employees, would be for the

larger companies to develop tailor-made trainings with the aim of upskilling other professio-

nal groups on dairy production and technology. For SME’s and smaller companies, the trainings

could very well be developed with relevant educational institutions. Either how, a multi-stake-

holder approach is considered to be the key to success.

29

In order to attract relevant employees with a different professional background, as for example

people educated in general food and beverage technology, it is recommendable to have a tighter

cooperation between different stakeholders, as employment offices, career guidance and the

dairy industry e.g.

Recruitment to dairy educationsThe dairy sector has more often than not, an old-fashioned image, which makes it quite difficult to at-

tract enough students to the different levels of dairy education. When thinking of dairy manufacturing,

many people think of hard physical work turning 50-kilo cheeses around and skimming milk manu-

ally. The image of fully automated dairies with advanced technology, robots, a green and sustainable

agenda as well as innovative - and value-based - products is not very widespread.

For the dairy educations to attract more students, it is recommendable to develop recruitment

campaigns and recruitment material with a much more modern approach, highlighting those

values that seem to fit with the preferred choices of the younger generations including the advanced

technology, robotics and green and sustainable agenda at the dairy manufacturing plants.

Furthermore, young adults seem to be more focused on the short term: Do they like the content

of the study programme?; Do they find it likely they will actually complete their studies?; etc. More-

over, in countries where the parents are still the decisive factor regarding their children’s choice of

education, it is also necessary to appeal to the values of the parents that seem to be somewhat dif-

ferent to those of the children; Parents want to know what the chances are for their children to get a

stable job as well as a good salary. Moreover, a clear recommendation from a UK-based recruitment

campaign, is to reach the young people when they are tweens.

As an example of best practices of joined forces of dairy companies and knowledge institutions

towards increased enrollment at the dairy education an effort from Northern Netherlands in 2014

may be illustrated. Dairy companies announced in the media that they were investing extensively in

extending their production locations and that they would need a lot of new employees within the next

few years. Additional to that, the knowledge institutions (master, bachelor and VET level) communi-

cated that they improved their educational programmes to fulfill the need of the companies and to

attract new students. This resulted in that the number of students enrolled, doubled after two years.

30

To enhance recruitment to the dairy industry, we recommend

• Know the values of the different generations and appeal to these with targeted campaigns

and when announcing job positions.

• For the younger generations, focus should be on values such as: high technology and

automation; the green and sustainable agenda; innovative and value-based products

(lactose free, organic, high protein, etc.).

• Furthermore, for young adults with small children, focus should also be on possibility

of flexible working hours and good work-family balance, in countries where this fits

with national labour regulations.

• For the older generation focus should be on stable jobs and good remunerations.

• In order to retain good employees, that are about to retire, dairy companies should be

aware of the possibilities for flexible working conditions according to national law, which

could encourage dairy employees to stay a little longer at the labour market.

• As regards a continuous upskilling of dairy employees and employees from other sectors

as for example the food and beverage sector, it is recommendable for:

• Larger companies to develop tailor made trainings to ensure upskilling of

employees to have the requested skills at any time.

• Smaller companies to team up with relevant educational institutions to develop

training programmes to upskill employees with requested skills.

• A multi-stakeholder approach would be fruitful:

• tight cooperation with employment offices, career guidance, etc. to attract

employees from other sectors.

• tighter cooperation between dairy manufacturing sector and the dairy educational

institutions to count on more resources and reach farther.

To increase enrollment to dairy educations, we recommend

• Dairy educations should make recruitment campaigns focusing on:

• the dairy sector as an innovative and modern sector which work with sustainability in

all its streams, which has advanced technology and automation, and spends invests

resources in developing innovative products, that appeal to the modern consumer.

• Tweens: campaigns should reach as far as to tweens, as experience shows that the

earlier they are influenced, the better.

• As for the parents to the young students, an add-on in the recruitment campaign,

stressing a sector with well-paid and stable jobs.

• For the educational institutions it is necessary to stress the focus on digital skills

as part of the educational programme (ref. ‘digital skills section’).

• The educational institutions should benefit from a tighter cooperation with

the dairy manufacturing companies.

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3. European Parliamentary Research Service (EPRS), 2018 ‘Briefing – the EU Dairy Sector’:

http://www.europarl.europa.eu/RegData/etudes/BRIE/2018/630345/EPRS_BRI(2018)630345_EN.pdf

4. Price Waterhouse Coopers (PWC) ‘Global CEO Survey (2019): https://www.pwc.com/mu/pwc-22nd-annual-global-ceo-survey-mu.pdf

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’http://www3.weforum.org/docs/WEF_Future_of_Jobs_2018.pdf

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