The armed forces of today are ever growing and there fore the need for catering staff has risen as well. They catering staff in the army, navy or air forces play a vital role in the health of the other people in their sector and they have to go through a lot of training before starting. Some of the areas they are trained in before starting are:

• Nutrition – This is one of the most important things for them to learn because of the fact they may be needed any where in the world and they would need to know exactly what foods would give the soldiers the right nutrients for the conditions they are working in. For example if they were in a desert then they would have to make sure they were getting plenty of food that has a high water content, but not too much and too little of everything else they need. No matter if they were in a boiling hot climate or freezing cold they would have to ensure they have the right balance so the body has exactly what it needs to perform to the standards it’s required.
• Management – Even if they are not management of the catering department they need to know how to handle situations where they are required to cater for large numbers of people. The standards of the food they prepare must be high if they are cooking for 50 or 2 people, because if the food is not prepared or cooked properly then it could result in one of the troops becoming ill. This is where good social skills come in because they mainly work as part of a team but they also need the ability to work independently, because it’s each person in the team playing their role that makes everything go as planned.
• Preparation – It is important for them to be prepared as they are required to set up the kitchen where ever they may be, whether that’s in a field or desert. They are trained to start up the cookers and other cooking equipment quickly and efficiently, there will also be a team manager that will be trained to organise and plan the duties for the other members of the catering team.
• Hygiene – Each member of the catering department must have at least a Level 1 Food Hygiene Certificate this is again to ensure the staff cooking the food have a basic knowledge of the correct ways to cook food and know how to ensure certain foods are cooked thoroughly before serving.

As well as learning all the skills for cooking the food they need to learn the basics of combat. This includes gun handling, map reading and they have to take the fitness test that every one else takes before joining the army or other forces. So although many people may not think it the catering department are a very important part of the forces as they make sure the rest have the energy to go on.