Food Production Operative Salary
Official ONS earnings for the UK, covering 147,000 jobs.
Median salary
£27,267
gross, per year, all employees
▲ 4.9% change on the previous year
Full-time only
£28,243
Part-time only
£16,070
Mean
£27,613
Jobs measured
147,000
What most food production operatives actually earn
Half of food production operatives earn between £22,837 and £33,002. Earning above £33,002 puts you in the top quarter of the profession.
The full pay range
Each bar is the salary at that percentile — the 25th means a quarter of food production operatives earn less than this.
Food Production Operative salary by region
11 of 11 GB regions have a published figure for this occupation.
| Region | Median | Mean |
|---|---|---|
| West Midlands | £28,052 | £28,333 |
| East | £27,917 | £27,422 |
| Scotland | £27,681 | £28,985 |
| North East | £27,669 | £30,603 |
| East Midlands | £27,521 | £27,557 |
| London | £27,451 | £27,071 |
| South West | £26,734 | £27,395 |
| Wales | £26,598 | £28,800 |
| South East | £26,527 | £25,528 |
| North West | £25,920 | £25,569 |
| Yorkshire and The Humber | £25,873 | £27,664 |
Where this figure comes from
- ONS occupation group
- Food, drink and tobacco process operatives
- SOC 2020 code
- 8111
- Measure
- Gross annual pay, all employees
- Edition
- ONS Annual Survey of Hours and Earnings, 2025 provisional
ONS doesn't measure “food production operative” as its own category. These figures are for the wider group “Food, drink and tobacco process operatives”, which includes this role alongside others. ONS measures food, drink and tobacco process operatives.
Source: Office for National Statistics, Annual Survey of Hours and Earnings. Contains public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0. Figures are estimates from a survey of PAYE jobs and are not financial advice.
Food Production Operative salary FAQs
What is the average Food Production Operative salary in UK?
The median is £27,267 a year and the mean is £27,613, according to the ONS Annual Survey of Hours and Earnings. Those cover all employees; full-time employees alone have a median of £28,243 and part-time employees £16,070.
What is a good Food Production Operative salary?
Half of food production operatives earn between £22,837 and £33,002. Anything above £33,002 is in the top quarter for the role.
Is this figure official?
Yes. It comes from the ONS Annual Survey of Hours and Earnings, an accredited official statistic based on employer PAYE records, covering 147,000 jobs in this occupation.
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