Also called: Food Authenticity Analyst, Food Integrity Specialist
Tests foods like honey, olive oil and fish to catch cheap fakes and fillers, and tracks where supply chains are most likely to cheat.
A shipment of 'pure' honey arrives, and you run it through an instrument that spots added sugar syrup. Next you check DNA tests on 'red snapper' that turns out to be tilapia. In the afternoon you update a risk list of which ingredients are most often faked.
Estimated from food company and testing lab postings.
Approximate: anchored on Bureau of Labor Statistics data for a broader job group.
Bachelor's degree (4-year), about 4 years after high school. Bachelor's in food science, chemistry or biology.
Ways in: 4-year college, Graduate school. Training cost: $15k – $60k.
Majors to look at: Food Science, Chemistry, Biology, Biochemistry.
Growing faster than average. Food safety rules and recalls push companies to test suppliers more.
Medium risk for 10 years. AI flags suspicious suppliers and data, but lab testing and investigations stay human.
Classes: AP Chemistry, Biology, Statistics.
Official data: O*NET occupation 19-4013.
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.