Fish and Seafood Processor

The purpose of this qualification is to prepare a learner to operate as a Fish and Seafood Processor. Fish and Seafood Processor will help learners to use equipment, including handheld equipment, and performs tasks to process fish or seafood products by de-icing, cleaning, sorting and grading, preparing and processing white and pelagic fish as well as seafood for consumption, to ensure that customer standards and specifications are met. Learners will benefit from knowing the safety measures of preparing fish and seafood for consumption to ensure standards and specifications are met. A qualified learner will be able to: • Receive fish according to specifications. • Prepare fish for processing. • Process fish products to specification. In one specific context within a range of species both pelagic fish, white fish and seafood.

This part qualification satisfies the needs for the processing of fish and seafood on shore. For this part qualification, fish includes pelagic fish species namely, sardines and pilchards, and whitefish species, sometimes referred to as line fish. It is not an industry preference to use the term line fish as this presupposes that fish under this term would all be caught by line, while fish can also be caught by the method of trawling. For this reason, a more generic term for whitefish is used by the industry. Seafood is a generic term that incorporates shellfish, squid, octopus and molluscs. This part qualification has been developed in collaboration with the industry to ensure access to the smaller plants that still require to develop their employees in manual processing. The part qualification will be recognised nationally and for the manual processors in various contexts (white fish, pelagic and seafood) ensuring consistency and quality across the fish and seafood industry and ensuring that all interested learners will have access to the right level of skills and experience.

Recognition of Prior Learning (RPL): Learners may use the RPL process to gain access to training opportunities for a programme of learning, qualification, part-qualification, or skills programme if they do not meet the formal, minimum entry requirements for admission. RPL assessment provides an alternative access route into a programme of learning, qualification, part-qualification, or skills programme. Such an RPL assessment may be developed, moderated, and conducted by the accredited Skills Development Provider which offers that specific qualification/part qualification/skills programme. Such an assessment must ensure that the learner is able to display the equivalent level of competencies required for access, based on the NQF level descriptors. For exemption from modules through RPL, learners who have gained the stipulated competencies of the modules of a programme of learning, qualification, part-qualification or skills programme through any means of formal, informal or non-formal learning and/or work experience, may be exempted from certain modules. Learners who have gained the stipulated competencies of the modules of a programme of learning, qualification, part-qualification, or skills programme through any means of formal, informal or non-formal learning and/or work experience, may be awarded credits towards relevant modules, and gaps identified for training, which is then concluded. A valid Statement of Results is required for admission to the EISA in which confirmation of achievement is provided that all internal assessment criteria for all modules in the related curriculum document have been achieved. For a Skills Programme, the accredited Skills Development Provider (SDP) must ensure all modular competency requirements are met prior to the EISA and keep record of such evidence. Upon successful completion of the EISA, RPL learners will be issued with the QCTO certificate for the qualification. Quality Partners are responsible for ensuring the RPL mechanism and process for qualifications is approved by the QCTO. Entry Requirements: • An NQF Level 1 Qualification.

1. Describe the fundamental knowledge and concepts required of an employee in the workplace including communication, interpersonal relations, business understanding, manufacturing, quality and food safety in the fish and seafood processing and related products manufacturing environment.