A professional who loads cuts of meat into pickling vats or barrels to cure meat preparatory to smoking. Respnsibilities include:

• Packs and arranges meat in vats or barrels by hand or with meat hook to ensure maximum saturation.
• Turns valves to admit curing solution into vats or pours in solution by hand.
• Covers vat or barrel to keep meat protected and submerged in solution.
• Sticks trier (hook) into meat and smells trier to determine degree of curing.
• Opens valves or pulls bungs to drain vats and barrels, and removes cured meat for further processing.
• Dumps frozen meat in water tank to defrost it preparatory to curing.
• May roll barrels to rearrange meat and ensure maximum saturation.
• May flush or blow marrow from ham bones.
• May clean vats with water and steam hoses.