Occupational Employment and Wages, May 2023

19-4013 Food Science Technicians

Work with food scientists or technologists to perform standardized qualitative and quantitative tests to determine physical or chemical properties of food or beverage products. Includes technicians who assist in research and development of production technology, quality control, packaging, processing, and use of foods.

National estimates for Food Science Technicians
Industry profile for Food Science Technicians
Geographic profile for Food Science Technicians

National estimates for Food Science Technicians:

Employment estimate and mean wage estimates for Food Science Technicians:

Employment (1)	Employment RSE (3)	Mean hourly wage	Mean annual wage (2)	Wage RSE (3)
15,190	3.0 %	$ 25.96	$ 54,000	0.8 %

Percentile wage estimates for Food Science Technicians:

Percentile	10%	25%	50% (Median)	75%	90%
Hourly Wage	$ 17.93	$ 20.08	$ 23.60	$ 29.51	$ 35.88
Annual Wage (2)	$ 37,290	$ 41,770	$ 49,090	$ 61,390	$ 74,630

Industry profile for Food Science Technicians:

Industries with the highest published employment and wages for Food Science Technicians are provided. For a list of all industries with employment in Food Science Technicians, see the Create Customized Tables function.

Industries with the highest levels of employment in Food Science Technicians:

Industry	Employment (1)	Percent of industry employment	Hourly mean wage	Annual mean wage (2)
Dairy Product Manufacturing	1,990	1.23	$ 25.06	$ 52,120
Other Food Manufacturing	1,910	0.74	$ 26.11	$ 54,320
Fruit and Vegetable Preserving and Specialty Food Manufacturing	1,670	0.98	$ 22.67	$ 47,150
Beverage Manufacturing	1,600	0.51	$ 28.82	$ 59,940
Scientific Research and Development Services	970	0.11	$ 36.33	$ 75,560

Industries with the highest concentration of employment in Food Science Technicians:

Industry	Employment (1)	Percent of industry employment	Hourly mean wage	Annual mean wage (2)
Dairy Product Manufacturing	1,990	1.23	$ 25.06	$ 52,120
Grain and Oilseed Milling	670	1.04	$ 26.36	$ 54,820
Fruit and Vegetable Preserving and Specialty Food Manufacturing	1,670	0.98	$ 22.67	$ 47,150
Other Food Manufacturing	1,910	0.74	$ 26.11	$ 54,320
Beverage Manufacturing	1,600	0.51	$ 28.82	$ 59,940

Top paying industries for Food Science Technicians:

Industry	Employment (1)	Percent of industry employment	Hourly mean wage	Annual mean wage (2)
Scientific Research and Development Services	970	0.11	$ 36.33	$ 75,560
Management of Companies and Enterprises	600	0.02	$ 31.14	$ 64,770
Beverage Manufacturing	1,600	0.51	$ 28.82	$ 59,940
Restaurants and Other Eating Places	(8)	(8)	$ 27.57	$ 57,340
Warehousing and Storage	130	0.01	$ 27.45	$ 57,090

Geographic profile for Food Science Technicians:

States and areas with the highest published employment, location quotients, and wages for Food Science Technicians are provided. For a list of all areas with employment in Food Science Technicians, see the Create Customized Tables function.

Map of employment of food science technicians by state, May 2023

States with the highest employment level in Food Science Technicians:

State	Employment (1)	Employment per thousand jobs	Location quotient (9)	Hourly mean wage	Annual mean wage (2)
California	4,130	0.23	2.30	$ 26.22	$ 54,540
Texas	1,160	0.09	0.86	$ 24.47	$ 50,900
New Jersey	760	0.18	1.81	$ 28.04	$ 58,330
Pennsylvania	750	0.13	1.26	$ 23.80	$ 49,500
Maryland	690	0.26	2.57	$ 29.38	$ 61,100

Map of location quotient of food science technicians by state, May 2023

States with the highest concentration of jobs and location quotients in Food Science Technicians:

State	Employment (1)	Employment per thousand jobs	Location quotient (9)	Hourly mean wage	Annual mean wage (2)
Idaho	430	0.52	5.17	$ 21.33	$ 44,370
Oregon	630	0.32	3.24	$ 23.63	$ 49,160
Iowa	460	0.30	2.98	$ 23.91	$ 49,730
Maryland	690	0.26	2.57	$ 29.38	$ 61,100
Nebraska	250	0.25	2.53	$ 21.62	$ 44,960

Map of annual mean wages of food science technicians by state, May 2023

Top paying states for Food Science Technicians:

State	Employment (1)	Employment per thousand jobs	Location quotient (9)	Hourly mean wage	Annual mean wage (2)
New Hampshire	40	0.07	0.65	$ 30.02	$ 62,450
Colorado	120	0.04	0.41	$ 29.75	$ 61,890
Ohio	300	0.06	0.55	$ 29.62	$ 61,610
Maryland	690	0.26	2.57	$ 29.38	$ 61,100
Massachusetts	120	0.03	0.32	$ 29.32	$ 60,990

Map of employment of food science technicians by area, May 2023

Metropolitan areas with the highest employment level in Food Science Technicians:

Metropolitan area	Employment (1)	Employment per thousand jobs	Location quotient (9)	Hourly mean wage	Annual mean wage (2)
Los Angeles-Long Beach-Anaheim, CA	840	0.14	1.37	$ 26.50	$ 55,120
New York-Newark-Jersey City, NY-NJ-PA	600	0.06	0.63	$ 29.53	$ 61,430
Baltimore-Columbia-Towson, MD	510	0.39	3.89	$ 29.97	$ 62,340
Dallas-Fort Worth-Arlington, TX	500	0.13	1.27	$ 25.31	$ 52,650
San Francisco-Oakland-Hayward, CA	380	0.16	1.58	$ 29.71	$ 61,790
St. Louis, MO-IL	350	0.26	2.61	$ 28.78	$ 59,860
Washington-Arlington-Alexandria, DC-VA-MD-WV	340	0.11	1.09	$ 47.05	$ 97,860
Portland-Vancouver-Hillsboro, OR-WA	300	0.25	2.46	$ 25.64	$ 53,330
Philadelphia-Camden-Wilmington, PA-NJ-DE-MD	280	0.10	1.00	$ 25.79	$ 53,640
Riverside-San Bernardino-Ontario, CA	280	0.17	1.66	$ 24.22	$ 50,370

Map of location quotient of food science technicians by area, May 2023

Metropolitan areas with the highest concentration of jobs and location quotients in Food Science Technicians:

Metropolitan area	Employment (1)	Employment per thousand jobs	Location quotient (9)	Hourly mean wage	Annual mean wage (2)
Napa, CA	240	3.12	31.16	$ 29.16	$ 60,650
Merced, CA	210	2.69	26.91	$ 27.29	$ 56,750
Twin Falls, ID	120	2.54	25.38	$ 21.70	$ 45,140
Hanford-Corcoran, CA	80	1.68	16.84	$ 22.30	$ 46,380
Visalia-Porterville, CA	250	1.47	14.69	$ 25.16	$ 52,340
Modesto, CA	240	1.25	12.52	$ 24.68	$ 51,330
Sioux City, IA-NE-SD	80	0.89	8.92	$ 23.66	$ 49,220
Santa Rosa, CA	170	0.84	8.40	$ 27.31	$ 56,800
San Luis Obispo-Paso Robles-Arroyo Grande, CA	90	0.78	7.79	$ 25.38	$ 52,780
Gainesville, GA	70	0.72	7.16	$ 19.48	$ 40,530

Map of annual mean wages of food science technicians by area, May 2023

Top paying metropolitan areas for Food Science Technicians:

Metropolitan area	Employment (1)	Employment per thousand jobs	Location quotient (9)	Hourly mean wage	Annual mean wage (2)
Washington-Arlington-Alexandria, DC-VA-MD-WV	340	0.11	1.09	$ 47.05	$ 97,860
Rochester, NY	80	0.15	1.54	$ 34.07	$ 70,870
Jacksonville, FL	60	0.07	0.75	$ 32.25	$ 67,070
Cincinnati, OH-KY-IN	60	0.06	0.57	$ 31.85	$ 66,250
Fort Collins, CO	50	0.31	3.15	$ 31.68	$ 65,900
Boston-Cambridge-Nashua, MA-NH	110	0.04	0.41	$ 30.62	$ 63,700
Virginia Beach-Norfolk-Newport News, VA-NC	40	0.05	0.55	$ 30.61	$ 63,670
Baltimore-Columbia-Towson, MD	510	0.39	3.89	$ 29.97	$ 62,340
San Francisco-Oakland-Hayward, CA	380	0.16	1.58	$ 29.71	$ 61,790
Columbus, OH	90	0.08	0.85	$ 29.66	$ 61,700

Nonmetropolitan areas with the highest employment in Food Science Technicians:

Nonmetropolitan area	Employment (1)	Employment per thousand jobs	Location quotient (9)	Hourly mean wage	Annual mean wage (2)
Southeast-Central Idaho nonmetropolitan area	100	1.07	10.70	$ 20.19	$ 41,990
North Georgia nonmetropolitan area	80	0.44	4.37	$ 19.87	$ 41,330
Eastern Oregon nonmetropolitan area	80	1.12	11.17	$ 20.39	$ 42,400
Eastern New Mexico nonmetropolitan area	80	0.50	5.05	$ 20.89	$ 43,450
South Central Wisconsin nonmetropolitan area	70	0.34	3.45	$ 24.79	$ 51,570

Nonmetropolitan areas with the highest concentration of jobs and location quotients in Food Science Technicians:

Nonmetropolitan area	Employment (1)	Employment per thousand jobs	Location quotient (9)	Hourly mean wage	Annual mean wage (2)
Eastern Oregon nonmetropolitan area	80	1.12	11.17	$ 20.39	$ 42,400
Southeast-Central Idaho nonmetropolitan area	100	1.07	10.70	$ 20.19	$ 41,990
East South Dakota nonmetropolitan area	70	0.54	5.37	$ 22.56	$ 46,930
Eastern New Mexico nonmetropolitan area	80	0.50	5.05	$ 20.89	$ 43,450
Western Wisconsin nonmetropolitan area	60	0.47	4.69	$ 26.27	$ 54,640

Top paying nonmetropolitan areas for Food Science Technicians:

Nonmetropolitan area	Employment (1)	Employment per thousand jobs	Location quotient (9)	Hourly mean wage	Annual mean wage (2)
West Northwestern Ohio nonmetropolitan area	50	0.19	1.92	$ 30.68	$ 63,820
Western Wisconsin nonmetropolitan area	60	0.47	4.69	$ 26.27	$ 54,640
Southeast Minnesota nonmetropolitan area	70	0.47	4.69	$ 26.16	$ 54,410
Balance of Lower Peninsula of Michigan nonmetropolitan area	60	0.22	2.16	$ 25.78	$ 53,620
South Central Wisconsin nonmetropolitan area	70	0.34	3.45	$ 24.79	$ 51,570

About May 2023 National, State, Metropolitan, and Nonmetropolitan Area Occupational Employment and Wage Estimates

These estimates are calculated with data collected from employers in all industry sectors, all metropolitan and nonmetropolitan areas, and all states and the District of Columbia. The top employment and wage figures are provided above. The complete list is available in the downloadable XLS files.

The percentile wage estimate is the value of a wage below which a certain percent of workers fall. The median wage is the 50th percentile wage estimate—50 percent of workers earn less than the median and 50 percent of workers earn more than the median. More about percentile wages.

(1) Estimates for detailed occupations do not sum to the totals because the totals include occupations not shown separately. Estimates do not include self-employed workers.

(2) Annual wages have been calculated by multiplying the hourly mean wage by a "year-round, full-time" hours figure of 2,080 hours; for those occupations where there is not an hourly wage published, the annual wage has been directly calculated from the reported survey data.

(3) The relative standard error (RSE) is a measure of the reliability of a survey statistic. The smaller the relative standard error, the more precise the estimate.

(8) Estimate not released.

(9) The location quotient is the ratio of the area concentration of occupational employment to the national average concentration. A location quotient greater than one indicates the occupation has a higher share of employment than average, and a location quotient less than one indicates the occupation is less prevalent in the area than average.

Other OEWS estimates and related information:

May 2023 National Occupational Employment and Wage Estimates

May 2023 State Occupational Employment and Wage Estimates

May 2023 Metropolitan and Nonmetropolitan Area Occupational Employment and Wage Estimates

May 2023 National Industry-Specific Occupational Employment and Wage Estimates

May 2023 Occupation Profiles

Technical Notes

Last Modified Date: April 3, 2024