In addition, positions in food science are associated with income well above the national average. Entrepreneurs are driving change in the food industry, but they have trouble getting too far without food scientists. The darkest areas on the map show where food scientists earn the highest salaries in all 50 states. Be open to a wide range of opportunities in food science, unless you're not comfortable with a certain role.
Food scientists are the ones who translate business ideas into products that work in the real world. Either way, with proper financial planning, a career in any of the various areas of food science should provide you with all the basic needs, a comfortable lifestyle, insurance, a retirement plan, and the ability to send at least some of your children to college (we said a few, no exaggerate here). However, in many cases, smaller companies drive business trends and offer food scientists a wide range of functions. They may outsource functions to other professionals, including food scientists who work in third-party laboratories.
The number of vacations offered will most likely match years of experience in the food science industry. Most food scientists, whether they work for a private company, an organization, the federal ones, or a university, will receive a salary with benefits. Director of the Undergraduate Food Science Program, Assistant Professor, Food Science Advisor, Michigan State University In the latest IFT survey, only 19% of respondents said that their preferred work environment in food science is a small, entrepreneurial company (with 99 employees or fewer). Food science remains a highly demanded profession, with rising salaries and substantial job satisfaction, according to the results of the latest employment and salary survey by the Institute of Food Technologists.
Meanwhile, over the past two or three years, “quality control and food safety professionals are in greater demand than ever,” says Oliver. If you've been trained in a large food company or a university with a good food technology program and can creatively support entrepreneurs with real knowledge, that's a great set of skills to offer. Moira McGrath, president of OPUS International, says that the demand for food scientists has been driven by the realities of the new candidate pool. Salary estimates are based on 755 salaries submitted anonymously to Glassdoor by the employees of a food scientist.
