Laboratory Assistant (Agricultural Crop Testing Facility) - 6 months

This is a 6 month fixed-term position starting in July to help our Seed Analyst in Charge with all aspects of the day-to-day running of our laboratory, which processes samples of commercial cereal crops collected from our farmer customers from farms across the southern counties and to ascertain their commercial value.

Crops that we process include wheat, oats and barley, beans and oilseed rape which are harvested in August and September before making their way into commercial food production, for example milling wheat for bread making.

Crop testing is busiest through the main Harvest period (August and September) and the role will encompass helping to coordinate the sampling team during this time, who will be out and about visiting farms to collect the crop samples.

Working Methodically And With Accuracy, Main Tasks Will Include:

1. Running samples of Grain and Seed through the various processes in the laboratory to include hagberg, moisture, weight, germinations and searches for purity, with different tests for each crop you will need to learn the steps for each.
2. Keeping accurate results and inputting results data into our Microsoft Dynamics database.
3. Running Moisture Clinics on crop samples in the period before harvest, helping our farmer customers understand their crop quality.
4. Coordination of the summer sampling team who will be collecting crop samples from customers' farms in July, August and September.
5. Monitor the Samplers' job lists each week during the main season and help to answer any queries from our farmer customers and colleagues on the status of samples as they arise.
6. Be able to cover the Intake Process when needed for seed crops and cereals which will involve collecting samples at the weighbridge from the open back of a bulk tipper lorry, running the appropriate tests through and checking on results before the load can be tipped into our store.
7. General housekeeping and cleaning of the laboratory and equipment.
8. Daily equipment checks.
9. Towards the end of the season, willing to work off-site to help with collecting final crop samples as the work reduces into the Autumn.

About You:

1. An interest or experience gained in laboratory-based work, field trials work, sciences and combined with an interest in or experience gained within the agriculture industry would be preferred.
2. A UK Drivers License.
3. Enjoy working on tasks in a methodical way; you will need to have keen attention to detail and be happy to work on repetitive tasks without losing concentration.
4. You will be working with data input and will need to be familiar with Microsoft products, Outlook, Excel; if you have used the Dynamics platform previously or other database entry, that would be advantageous to the role.
5. Reliable and punctual; the role is to support our Seed Analyst in Charge with all parts of the role and so we are looking for a candidate who will take this challenge on and work with diligence.

About Bartholomews:

Leading in our field, developing a sustainable Agri Food Chain. We are a main contributor in the UK agri-foods sector, headquartered in Chichester, West Sussex and operating across the southern counties of England. We are a business built on perpetuity, first established in 1883 and we are continuing to grow and prosper.

We provide a range of agricultural services and essential supplies to the farming community including the sale and marketing of grain, the sale and supply of agricultural seeds, the manufacture and supply of fertilizers, crop protection products, animal feeds, bird-food and game feeds. We also provide technical advisory agronomy service to our farmer customers, and we are engaged in ongoing research and development through our extensive cereal crop trials.

Our facilities include a seed plant and crop research, technology, and multiplication center near Chichester and our dock-side sites of Shoreham Silos Services Ltd and Ultimate Fertilizers Ltd in Southampton. We have our own haulage company, Churchill Freight Services Ltd and multiple depots across the South of England. All these facilities and sites make our company proportionately the best-resourced Agrifood business in the United Kingdom.

Our mission, as an integral part of the food chain, is to connect growers with UK and European consumers, adopting new technologies and always striving for sustainable food security.