How To Become A Food Technologist: What It Is and Career Path

What is a food technologist and how to become one

Updated January 8, 2025

4 min read

Quoted Expert

Dr. Chris Sigler

Food technologists are those that plan the manufacture of food and drink products and who can work in a wide range of settings. You will generate new product ideas and recipes while you modify and improve existing recipes for the company. You will also help to design processes and machinery for the production of recipes on a large scale. Likely, a strict hygiene food safety standard must be met by you. You will also be the one to identify and choose the best products for food or drink preparation from the suppliers. Reports will be given on the procedures to other colleagues and management.

The food technologist earns an average of $53,585 annually. The educational requirement for the post of food technologist is at least a bachelor's degree in food science and technology, food/chemical engineering, biochemistry, or related field. Excellent written and verbal communication skills will be needed as a food technologist. You must also be confident and be able to work independently.

What general advice would you give to a Food Technologist?

Dr. Chris Sigler

Assistant Teaching Professor/Academic Advisor, Pennsylvania State University

I would stress that food is a commonality all humans share. The education and skill set acquired in a Food Science Degree are going to be needed, more than ever, moving forward, to critically examine and analyze how to approach new concerns and opportunities left in the wake of the pandemic.

Being able to adapt and modify how to connect, collaborate, and share information and resources to better themselves, their colleagues, their employers, and the field of food science, in general, will be critical moving forward.

ScoreFood TechnologistUS Average

Salary

4.9

Avg. Salary $62,229

Avg. Salary $59,228

Stability Level

5.4

Growth Rate 8%

Growth Rate 0.3%

Diversity

5.5

Race

American Indian and Alaska Native 0.24%

Asian 12.04%

Black or African American 4.06%

Hispanic or Latino 8.05%

Unknown 2.75%

White 72.85%

Gender

female 54.93%

male 45.07%

Age - 38

Race

American Indian and Alaska Native 3.00%

Asian 7.00%

Black or African American 14.00%

Hispanic or Latino 19.00%

White 57.00%

Gender

female 47.00%

male 53.00%

Age - 38

Stress Level

5.4

Stress level is manageable

7.1 - high

Complexity Level

8.3

Complexity Level is challenging

7 - challenging

Work Life Balance

5.2

Work Life balance is fair

6.4 - fair

Key steps to become a food technologist

Explore food technologist education requirements

Most common food technologist degrees

Bachelor's

56.9 %

High School Diploma

13.4 %

Associate

12.7 %

Start to develop specific food technologist skills

Skills	Percentages
Food Safety	16.43%
Food Preparation	7.79%
Regulatory Compliance	4.74%
Cleanliness	4.38%
Safety Standards	4.16%

Complete relevant food technologist training and internships

Accountants spend an average of 1-3 months on post-employment, on-the-job training. New food technologists learn the skills and techniques required for their job and employer during this time. The chart below shows how long it takes to gain competency as a food technologist based on U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics data and data from real food technologist resumes.

Research food technologist duties and responsibilities

Develop and process data and presentations and manage technical documents for FDA & USDA.
Organize schedules for employees and set payroll -Provide direction and solve employee problems -Be extremely personable & manage stock control
Train and supervise employees GMP and GHP.
Create process controls and preventative actions through HACCP system/principles.

Prepare your food technologist resume

When your background is strong enough, you can start writing your food technologist resume.

You can use Zippia's AI resume builder to make the resume writing process easier while also making sure that you include key information that hiring managers expect to see on a food technologist resume. You'll find resume tips and examples of skills, responsibilities, and summaries, all provided by Zippi, your career sidekick.

Choose From 10+ Customizable Food Technologist Resume templates

Build a professional Food Technologist resume in minutes. Browse through our resume examples to identify the best way to word your resume. Then choose from 10+ resume templates to create your Food Technologist resume.

Apply for food technologist jobs

Now it's time to start searching for a food technologist job. Consider the tips below for a successful job search:

Browse job boards for relevant postings
Consult your professional network
Reach out to companies you're interested in working for directly
Watch out for job scams

How do food technologists rate their job?

-/5

5 Stars

4 Stars

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1 Star

Food Technologist reviews

A zippia user wrote a review on Apr 2019

Pros

Ingenuity and the fast paced environment while critical thinking to solve the problems.