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Food Scientists and Technologists

	Median Wage (USD, 2024)	Projected Job Openings (2024-2034)	Projected Growth (2024-2034)
National Statistics	$85310	1200	6.5%
State Statistics	-	-	-
City Statistics	-	-	-

Statistics

National

State

City

State

City

$85310

Median Wage (USD, 2024)

1200

Projected Job Openings (2024-2034)

6.5%

Projected Growth (2024-2034)

Use chemistry, microbiology, engineering, and other sciences to study the principles underlying the processing and deterioration of foods; analyze food content to determine levels of vitamins, fat, sugar, and protein; discover new food sources; research ways to make processed foods safe, palatable, and healthful; and apply food science knowledge to determine best ways to process, package, preserve, store, and distribute food.

Experience Requirements Overview

Job Zone Four: Considerable Preparation Needed
A considerable amount of work-related skill, knowledge, or experience is needed for these occupations. For example, an accountant must complete four years of college and work for several years in accounting to be considered qualified.
Most of these occupations require a four-year bachelor's degree, but some do not.
Employees in these occupations usually need several years of work-related experience, on-the-job training, and/or vocational training.

Education, Training and Experience

Required Level of Education: Bachelor's Degree

Related Work Experience: N.A.

On-Site or In-Plant Training: Up to and including 1 month

On-the-Job Training: Over 3 months, up to and including 6 months

Detailed Work Activities

Develop specifications for new products or processes.
Review professional literature to maintain professional knowledge.
Test quality of materials or finished products.
Evaluate quality of materials or products.
Collaborate with technical specialists to resolve design or development problems.
Evaluate new technologies or methods.
Research methods to improve food products.
Establish standards for products, processes, or procedures.
Confer with clients to exchange information.
Inspect areas for compliance with sanitation standards.

Work Values

Achievement

Occupations that satisfy this work value are results oriented and allow employees to use their strongest abilities, giving them a feeling of accomplishment. Corresponding needs are Ability Utilization and Achievement.

Working Conditions

Recognition

Relationships

Support

Independence

Tasks

Inspect food processing areas to ensure compliance with government regulations and standards for sanitation, safety, quality, and waste management.
Check raw ingredients for maturity or stability for processing, and finished products for safety, quality, and nutritional value.
Study methods to improve aspects of foods, such as chemical composition, flavor, color, texture, nutritional value, and convenience.
Develop food standards and production specifications, safety and sanitary regulations, and waste management and water supply specifications.
Stay up to date on new regulations and current events regarding food science by reviewing scientific literature.
Study the structure and composition of food or the changes foods undergo in storage and processing.
Confer with process engineers, plant operators, flavor experts, and packaging and marketing specialists to resolve problems in product development.
Test new products for flavor, texture, color, nutritional content, and adherence to government and industry standards.
Develop new food items for production, based on consumer feedback.
Develop new or improved ways of preserving, processing, packaging, storing, and delivering foods, using knowledge of chemistry, microbiology, and other sciences.
Evaluate food processing and storage operations and assist in the development of quality assurance programs for such operations.
Demonstrate products to clients.
Seek substitutes for harmful or undesirable additives, such as nitrites.

Work Styles

Innovation

A tendency to be inventive, to be imaginative, and to adopt new perspectives on ways to accomplish work.

Innovation

Achievement Orientation

Intellectual Curiosity

Tolerance for Ambiguity

Initiative

Adaptability

Self-Confidence

Perseverance

Leadership Orientation

Humility

Sincerity

Empathy

Cooperation

Optimism

Social Orientation

Cautiousness

Attention to Detail

Dependability

Integrity

Stress Tolerance

Self-Control

Data Source: This page includes information from the O*NET 30.0 Database by the U.S. Department of Labor, Employment and Training Administration (USDOL/ETA). Used under the CC BY 4.0 license. O*NET® is a trademark of USDOL/ETA. This page includes Employment Projections program, Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics program, U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.

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