Food and Agricultural Scientist / Technologist
What Does a Professional in this Career Do?
Studies plants and animals used in food production. Researches topics related to improving quality and productivity in agriculture and livestock farming, or food science and nutrition. May specialize in applying food science to food product development.
Job Outlook
There were 69 Food and Agricultural Scientist / Technologist job postings in North Carolina in the past year and 2944 in the United States.
In combination with other careers in the Food and Agricultural Scientist / Technologist industry, which includes the Food and Agricultural Scientist / Technologist career, the following graph shows the number of people employed for each year since 2012:
Salary
Many new Food and Agricultural Scientist / Technologist jobs have salaries estimated to be in the following ranges, based on the requirements and responsibilities listed in job postings from the past year.
National
The average estimated salary in the United States for this career, based on job postings in the past year, is $65,959.
State
The average estimated salary in North Carolina for this career, based on job postings in the past year, is $69,962.
Percentiles represent the percentage that is lower than the value. For example, 25% of estimated salaries for Food and Agricultural Scientist / Technologist postings in the United States in the past year were lower than $52,168.
Education and Experience
Posted Food and Agricultural Scientist / Technologist jobs typically require the following level of education. The numbers below are based on job postings in the United States from the past year. Not all job postings list education requirements.
| Education Level | Percentage |
|---|---|
| Associate's Degree | 4% |
| Bachelor's Degree | 64% |
| Master's Degree | 30% |
| Doctoral Degree | 3% |
| Other | 0% |
Posted Food and Agricultural Scientist / Technologist jobs typically require the following number of years of experience. The numbers below are based on job postings in the United States from the past year. Not all job postings list experience requirements.
| Years of Experience | Percentage |
|---|---|
| 0 to 2 years | 35% |
| 3 to 5 years | 51% |
| 6 to 8 years | 9% |
| 9+ years | 5% |
Skills
Below are listings of the most common general and specialized skills Food and Agricultural Scientist / Technologist positions expect applicants to have as well as the most common skills that distinguish individuals from their peers. The percentage of job postings that specifically mention each skill is also listed.
Baseline Skills
A skill that is required across a broad range of occupations, including this one.
- Communication Skills (46%)
- Teamwork / Collaboration (40%)
- Research (38%)
- Writing (22%)
- Problem Solving (22%)
Defining Skills
A core skill for this occupation, it occurs frequently in job postings.
- Food Science (52%)
- Product Development (45%)
- Chemistry (30%)
- Project Management (26%)
- Food Safety (26%)
Necessary Skills
A skill that is requested frequently in this occupation but isn’t specific to it.
- Quality Assurance and Control (16%)
- Biology (14%)
- Scheduling (14%)
- Budgeting (11%)
- Purchasing (10%)
Distinguishing Skills
A skill that may distinguish a subset of the occupation.
- Experimental Design (5%)
- Food Safety and Quality (4%)
Salary Boosting Skills
A professional who wishes to excel in this career path may consider developing the following highly valued skills. The percentage of job postings that specifically mention each skill is listed along with the marginal value: the average salary difference between postings that request that skill and those that do not.
- Product Testing (2%) – marginal value $7,273
- Fermentation (3%) – marginal value $6,081
- Consumer Insights (1%) – marginal value $5,750
Alternative Job Titles
Sometimes employers post jobs with Food and Agricultural Scientist / Technologist skills but a different job title. Some common alternative job titles include:
- Food Scientist
- Senior Food Scientist
- Product Development Scientist
- Food Technologist
- Senior Value-Based Programs Professional
Similar Occupations
If you are interested in exploring occupations with similar skills, you may want to research the following job titles. Note that we only list occupations that have at least one corresponding NC State Online and Distance Education program.
- Food Processing Engineer
- Research and Development Chemist
- Food / Beverage Quality Manager
- Polymer Chemist
- Biochemist
- Food / Agricultural Technician
- Microbiologist
Common Employers
Here are the employers that have posted the most Food and Agricultural Scientist / Technologist jobs in the past year along with how many they have posted.
United States
- Revolution Global (157)
- Humana (132)
- ConAgra Foods (78)
- Owens Corning (53)
- Henkel (33)
North Carolina
- Biofidelity (4)
- Vontier (2)
- Westrock Coffee (2)
- US Department of Commerce (2)
- Humana (2)
NC State Programs Relevant to this Career
If you are interested in preparing for a career in this field, the following NC State Online and Distance Education programs offer a great place to start!
- Agricultural Science Undergraduate Degrees
- Animal Nutrition Undergraduate Certificates
- Animal Science Master's Degrees
- Crop Science Undergraduate Certificates
- Feed Milling Undergraduate Certificates
- Food Safety & Quality Management Undergraduate Certificates
- Microbiology Undergraduate Certificates
- Nutrition Master's Degrees
- Plant Pests, Pathogens and People Undergraduate Certificates
- Regulatory Science in Agriculture Graduate Certificates
- Regulatory Science in Agriculture Undergraduate Certificates
- Soil Science Undergraduate Certificates
- Soil Science Master's Degrees
All wages, job posting statistics, employment trend projections, and information about skill desirability on this page represents historical data and does not guarantee future conditions. Data is provided by and downloaded regularly from Lightcast. For more information about how Lightcast gathers data and what it represents, see Lightcast Data: Basic Overview on Lightcast's Knowledge Base website.