CAREER

Food Scientists and Technologists

Overview

Salary Median (2020)

$73,450

Projected Job Growth (2019-2029)

+4.4% (slower than the average)

Most Common Level of Education

Bachelor's degree

Career

What Food Scientists and Technologists Do

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.

Other Job Titles Food Scientists and Technologists May Have

Food Chemist, Food Engineer, Food Scientist, Food Technologist, Food and Drug Research Scientist, Formulator, Product Development Scientist, Research Chef, Research Food Technologist, Research Scientist

How Leaders Describe a Typical Day at Work

Associate Scientist ,

Impossible Foods

My day is a blend of creativity, science, and culinary expertise. I review scientific literature and develop hypotheses for new plant-based meat and dairy products. In the lab, I craft prototypes using various ingredients and techniques, testing them for taste, texture, and appearance. It's like painting a blank canvas but with flavors and ingredients instead of paint. Each product isn't just a technical achievement—it's something that impacts public health and consumer choices on a large scale.

Food and Beverage Analyst ,

Mintel

50% writing, 30% researching food markets, 10% filling out forms for data requests, 10% meetings with work team/calls with clients/interviews with journalists.


Tasks & Responsibilities May Include

  • 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.
  • Develop new or improved ways of preserving, processing, packaging, storing, and delivering foods, using knowledge of chemistry, microbiology, and other sciences.
  • Test new products for flavor, texture, color, nutritional content, and adherence to government and industry standards.
  • Stay up to date on new regulations and current events regarding food science by reviewing scientific literature.

This page includes information from theO*NET 26.1 Databaseby the U.S. Department of Labor, Employment and Training Administration (USDOL/ETA). Used under theCC BY 4.0license. O*NET® is a trademark of USDOL/ETA.