266: Career Conversations: How to get ahead as a food technologist

"I really love to see a client that's satisfied," says Tessa Anderson. "That they're in a much better position than when I first met them."

Tessa is a qualified food technologist and is Managing Director of Pack Copy Sent Consultancy.

She knows just about everything there is to know about food regulations and labelling, and helps companies get their consumable products safely approved for sale.

Tessa says relationships are critical to the work she does, and says networking is a big part of her job.

"I love helping people and I love meeting people," she tells Elisa Roche in this episode of the Career Conversations podcast series.

Reading up on the latest legislation also takes up a lot of her time.

It's crucial that she stays on top of any new rules around food packaging, wherever in the world they might be introduced.

But it's not all "reaching out" and reading up, Tessa says there's no such thing as a typical day for her.

Her journey began at Manchester Metropolitan University, where she studied Food Technology, a course she says set her up "really well" for work, so well that she still refers back to her lecture notes.

She says she has always been interested in the forensic side of food "possibly linked to watching CSI: Miami and Poirot" growing up.

After years of working in-house, she decided to make the jump to consultancy work, something she describes as a "steep learning curve", but one she doesn't regret.

The first decade saw her working with companies such as Morrisons, Greencore, and Kerry.

Now she has an even bigger mix and does just as much work with small businesses as larger ones.

Listen to the full episode to get some top tips for where to find food technologist jobs, how she keeps on top of all the latest law changes, and why she places so much store in being an ethical businesswoman.

Tessa Anderson, Managing Director, Pack Copy Sent

Tessa is a qualified Food Technologist, co- founder and Managing Director of Pack Copy Sent Consultancy.

Over the past 20 years, Tessa has worked with Food Manufacturers, Retailers and Technical Service Providers helping businesses manage their food product information in the form of data migration projects, training, specification management and artwork checks.

Tessa also provides training for individuals and teams.

Tessa loves making and eating vegan and plant-based food, the outdoors, walking in nature, meeting new people and exploring new cultures.