Arla Foods Dairy Technologist Apprenticeship- Stourton Dairy (Leeds, GB)

EDEN Dairy Technologist Apprenticeship

Arla Foods, Stourton Dairy

LS10 1AX

2 year programme, commencing 18th August 2025

Year 1 salary- £21,000 per annum

Year 2 salary- £24,000 per annum

Embark on a journey to become an expert in dairy and food manufacturing as an Apprentice Dairy Technologist. Over the course of two years, you’ll master the art of producing high-quality, tasty products for some of the nation’s favourite retailers within the food manufacturing industry.

Upon completion of the programme, you will graduate with a Level 5 Foundation Degree in Dairy Technology from Reaseheath College, in partnership with The University of Chester. Your course will combine hands-on practical experience with classroom-based learning. You will also gain a Level 3 award in Health & safety, Food Safety, and HACCP, along with gaining a breadth of experience across all core elements of food manufacturing.

The best bit? You will earn as you learn! Your salary will increase year on year as you progress and develop.

What do we offer?

26 days holiday & Bank Holidays Pension contribution matched up to 6% 4 x annual salary life assurance Access to discounted products in our Staff Shop People agenda commitment to training and development Flexible Benefits- reward gateway scheme- discounts with various retailers via my benefit platform. Accommodation and expenses, including food and travel, are provided for the duration of your study blocks at Reaseheath College. Most importantly - Cheese hamper at Christmas!

How will you make an impact?

At Arla Foods, our commitment to excellence in manufacturing ensures we reward our farmer-owners and meet the needs of our customers.

As an Apprentice Dairy Technologist, you’ll learn how to work fast in Production, how to enhance quality in the Lab, how to optimise technology in Process, how to innovate in Engineering, and how to keep your colleagues safe in Health & Safety. You will gain a commercial mindset and understand the importance of customer relationships.

You'll play a key role in our continual growth, embodying our values in everything you do. At the end of your apprenticeship, you'll have the opportunity to choose the rotation you enjoyed the most and plan your future with the team that fits you best. At Arla Foods, the possibilities are endless.

What will make you successful?

Eligibility: You must be 18+ by the 18th August 2025 to apply due to the hands-on nature of the role Qualifications: You must have achieved a minimum of 5 GCSE’s grade 9-4 (A*-C), including Maths and English (or the Scottish equivalent) Passion for learning: Embrace the opportunity to learn both on the job and in the classroom.

Note: As part of the application process, please clearly detail your qualifications within your application, as well as providing scanned copies of your certificates. Predicted grades will also be accepted.

Things we’d love to tell you about Arla Foods & Stourton Dairy

We are a farmer- owned cooperative, committed to partnering with farmers so they are guaranteed a fair price for their milk. We are the producer of Lurpak, one of the world’s most iconic butter brands. We are a Danish business, operating across the UK, Europe, Asia, The Middle East, North America, South America and other regions across the globe. Stourton Dairy is Arla UK’s 2nd largest dairy and the most complex across our UK supply chain. The site produces over 200 SKUs across 14 filling lines, including our renowned brands like Cravendale, BOB filtered milk, and Baileys, as well as products for McDonald’s and all our major retailers. Stourton has recently received an investment £65 million to expand Arla’s capabilities in extended shelf life (ESL) milk. This expansion will enable the site to produce enough extra milk capacity to fill approximately 560 million bowls of cereal!

Would you like to join us?

Please apply directly via our careers page. The closing date for this position is the 7th April 2025 and only CV’s sent directly via the application link will be considered. If you have any questions, or require any reasonable adjustments as part of the application process, please reach out to Olivia Pine, Talent Acquisition Partner at Arla Foods, at olpyn@arlafoods.com.

Here’s the recruitment process that you will go through as an applicant:

Our initial shortlist will be based on your CV and your motivation for applying for the role. It’s crucial to convey your personality through your CV, allowing us to get a sense of who you are and what drives you. If shortlisted, you will be invited to participate in an online HireVue video interview. If successful at this stage, you will be invited to attend a face-to-face assessment centre at Arla Foods Head Office in May 2025. During this assessment, you will engage in group activities and a formal interview. If you are selected following this stage, you will be invited to our Stourton Dairy for a final interview and site tour with members of our site operations team.

We have a purpose for Good

At Arla, we strive to unlock the highest potential in each other while working together to create a sustainable future of dairy. We call it Stronger People Stronger Planet and it is deeply anchored in our organisation and founded on our commitment to respecting human rights, increasing access to healthy dairy nutrition, inspiring good food habits, and improving the environment for future generations. In order to succeed we need to hire people with a sustainable mindset. Could this be you?

BEWARE! RECRUITMENT FRAUD It has come to our attention that there are a number of fraudulent emails and fake recruitment campaigns on the internet from people purporting to work for Arla Foods. Learn more via this link.