Also called: Meat & Poultry Scientist
Studies how to make meat safe, tasty, and efficient to produce, from carcass grading to food safety.
Tests how aging time changes steak tenderness, designs food-safety programs for a processing plant, and coaches a collegiate meat judging team.
Estimate based on BLS food scientists.
Approximate: anchored on Bureau of Labor Statistics data for a broader job group.
Master's degree, about 6 years after high school. Bachelor's in animal or food science; master's or PhD for research.
Ways in: 4-year college, Graduate school. Training cost: $15k – $60k.
Majors to look at: Animal Science, Agriculture, Biology, Food Science.
Growing about average. Steady.
Low risk in 5 years, medium in 10. Camera grading and AI quality systems automate carcass scoring; food-safety research and product development stay human-led.
Classes: AP Biology, AP Chemistry, Food science CTE, Statistics.
Official data: O*NET occupation 19-1012.
Career Universe is an early version. Pay, training and AI-risk figures are estimates to start your own research, not verified facts. The research was written with AI research assistants, checked by validation scripts and spot-checked by hand. Check anything important with schools, employers and official sources. How the numbers work.