IF you shop for your meat at Farm Fresh Meats in Windsor Riverview Shopping Centre, chances are you’ve been served by apprentice Harrison Molden.
The third-year TAFE student has become a finalist in the 2018 Australian Meat Industry Council (AMIC) NSW/ACT Apprentice of the Year competition.
The 19-year-old - who travels from Cobbitty to work - will compete against finalists from Alexandria, Pyrmont, Miranda, Jordan Springs, North Epping, Ryde, Rouse Hill, Manly, Miranda and Nelson Bay.
On Thursday, September 20 at TAFE NSW Granville, each apprentice will battle it out for the title of the 2018 Apprentice of the Year.
The apprentices will sit a Theory Exam (knowledge of skills), a Practical Exam (create various cuts of meats) and come up against a Mystery Box (where they will need to create value added products from a selection of ingredients).
The judges’ scores are based on how the apprentices perform on the day, including in the areas of personal hygiene, preparation and performance, food safety and OH&S, use of equipment, product and underpinning knowledge, use of ingredients, and creativity and practical application of end products.
Harrison said there are five other students from his Granville TAFE class competing on Thursday, as well as a few from outside shops.
“My teacher sent out a notification to the class to apply, and they picked the apprentices they wanted to compete,” he said.
He said the theory element of the competition would probably be the most challenging on the day.
When asked what he thought his chances of winning were, he said: “I’d like to think they’re pretty high. I know one of the other apprentices will be a bit of competition.”
The winner of the 2018 AMIC NSW/ACT Apprentice of the Year Competition will represent the state at the national competition in Perth in February next year.