Also called: Retort Operator, Canning Retort Operator
Runs giant pressure cookers that sterilize sealed cans and pouches of food so they stay safe on a shelf for years.
Baskets of sealed soup cans roll into a retort, a steel pressure cooker as long as a bus. You set exact time and temperature, watch the chart, and record every detail. If the heat dips even a little, you hold the batch, because under-cooked cans could cause deadly botulism.
Approximate: anchored on Bureau of Labor Statistics data for a broader job group.
Certificate, about 0.25 years after high school. High school plus a Better Process Control School certificate.
Ways in: On-the-job training, Certification. Training cost: Under $15k.
Majors to look at: Food Science.
Growing about average. Canned and pouched foods remain steady.
Medium risk for 10 years. Computers control retorts, but trained people must watch, verify and sign off each batch.
Age 18+. One way to start: Get hired at a canning plant, then take the Better Process Control School course First: Better Process Control School certificate (about 4 days)
Classes: Chemistry, Biology, Algebra, Culinary arts.
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.