Agriculture, Horticulture and the Outdoors
Food / Agricultural Inspector
Career Area: Agriculture, Horticulture, & the Outdoors
Occupation Group: Agriculture Workers
Salary
Percentile wages tell how much a certain percentage of an overall population in a geographic area or within a given industry or field makes. The percentile wage estimate is the value of a wage below which a certain percent of workers fall.
An example would be the 25th percentile, 25 percent of workers employed in that occupation earn less and 75 percent earn more than the estimated wage value. At the 75th percentile, 75 percent of workers employed in that occupation earn less and 25 percent earn more than the estimated wage value.
A typical Food / Agricultural Inspector earns the following wages (national and state):
State
The average salary in North Carolina for those pursuing this career is $37,569
National
The average salary in the United States for those pursuing this career is $39,006
What Does a Professional in this Career Do?
Inspects food, processed food and food containers to be sure they are safe for consumers, or inspects animals, animal feed or crops to check for disease that could affect food supplies. Checks for compliance with private industry standards or federal food safety and agricultural regulations.
Employment Trends
The job demand and job growth statistics shown here were derived from job posts over the past year. Expected job growth projections are extrapolated from year-over-year job post listing history.
Job demand and job growth is expected at the following rates:
| Growth | ||
|---|---|---|
| North Carolina | 31 | +5.4% |
| Nationwide | 1795 | +6.2% |
Skills
A professional in this position typically utilizes the following skills in the course of everyday work in this exciting and challenging field:
Baseline Skills
The following are baseline skills every Food / Agricultural Inspector is expected to have in order to experience success in this field:
- Detail-Oriented: A detail oriented person is someone who pays attention to the details and can make a conscious effort to understand causes instead of just the effects, and that does this in a second nature type of way.
- Physical Abilities: Physical Abilities, which refers to the ability to quickly and repeatedly bend, stretch, twist, or reach out with the body, arms, and/or legs. These abilities often require strength, endurance, flexibility, balance and coordination.
- Communication Skills: The ability to convey information to another effectively and efficiently.
- Range of Motion: Range of motion (or ROM), is the linear or angular distance that a moving object may normally travel while properly attached to another.
- English: English is a West Germanic language that was first spoken in early medieval England and is now a global lingua franca.
Specialized Skills
These skills are specific to working in this career:
- Food Safety: Food safety is a scientific discipline describing handling, preparation, and storage of food in ways that prevent foodborne illness.
- Food Preparation: Food preparation preparing food for eating, generally requires selection, measurement and combination of ingredients in an ordered procedure so as to achieve desired results.
- Lifting Ability: Requires Lifting Ability, which is the ability to raise and object to a higher position or level, or pick up and move an object to a different position.
- Food Science: Food science is the applied science devoted to the study of food.
- Food Service Experience: Foodservice(US English) or catering industry (British English)definesthose businesses, institutions, and companies responsible for any meal prepared outside the home. This industry includes restaurants, school and hospital cafeterias, catering operations, and many other formats
Distinguishing Skills
Any Food / Agricultural Inspector that possesses the following skills will stand out against the competition:
- Viscera:
Education
This career typically requires the following level of education. The numbers presented in the pie charts below were derived from actual job posts over the past year. Not all job postings list education requirements.
.| Education Level | % |
| Bachelor's Degree | 8% |
| Master's Degree | 0% |
| Doctoral Degree | 0% |
Experience
This position typically requires the following level of experience. The numbers presented in the pie charts below were derived from actual job posts over the past year. Not all job postings list experience requirements.
| Experience Required | % |
| 0 to 2 years | 37% |
| 3 to 5 years | 61% |
| 6 to 8 years | 2% |
Many of the programs offered through NC State are designed for working professionals who need additional credentials to enhance existing work experience.
Students who do not have the expected level of experience may wish to look into internship and employment opportunities.
Common Job Titles
It is possible to find work in this field in positions commonly listed as the following job titles:
- Specialist Operational Excellence And Food Safety - Steritech
- Food Inspector
- Specialist Operational Excellence And Food Safety
- Food Safety Specialist
- Food Safety & Brand Standard Specialist
Similar Occupations
If you are interested in exploring similar occupations, you may want to research the following job titles:
Source: Burning Glass Technologies. http://www.burning-glass.com. 2019.