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Agricultural Inspectors
Inspect agricultural commodities, processing equipment, and facilities, and fish and logging operations, to ensure compliance with regulations and laws governing health, quality, and safety.
Other titles employers use
Brand Inspector · Consumer Safety Inspector (CSI) · Food Inspector · Food Safety and Inspection Service Inspector (FSIS Inspector) · Food Sanitarian · Grain Inspector · Inspector · Seed and Fertilizer Specialist
Inside the work
What you would actually do.
2 responsibilities that define the role, before job titles and workplaces change the details.
- Inspect food products and processing procedures to determine whether products are safe to eat.
- Interpret and enforce government acts and regulations and explain required standards to agricultural workers.
Who it suits
Would this work hold your attention?
This career often appeals to people drawn to practical, organizing and analytical work.
- Practical
- Building, repairing, using tools, or working outdoors
- Organizing
- Creating order, checking details, and keeping work accurate
- Analytical
- Investigating questions, testing ideas, and solving problems
Skills and strengths
What you would get good at.
Compare the skills the work relies on, the subjects behind it, and the abilities that make it easier to learn.
Core skills
- Quality Control Analysis
- Reading Comprehension
- Active Listening
- Monitoring
- Critical Thinking
- Speaking
Subjects to know
- Customer and Personal Service
- Administration and Management
- Law and Government
- Administrative
- Mathematics
Useful strengths
- Problem Sensitivity
- Oral Comprehension
- Deductive Reasoning
- Inductive Reasoning
- Near Vision
Working day
Picture yourself doing it.
These measures show how much of the day involves people, movement, conversation, and hands-on work.
| Measure | Out of 5 | What that means here |
|---|---|---|
| Close to other people | 3.7 | Shared rooms, but not shoulder to shoulder |
| On your feet | 3.6 | Up and down through the day |
| Talking face to face | 4.3 | A regular part of the day |
| Working with your hands | 3.6 | Some of the day |
Preparation
How people prepare for this work.
Employers usually ask for a bachelor's degree. Other routes may also lead into the field.
- High school or less 63%
- A certificate or some college 13%
- A two-year degree 12%
- A four-year degree 10%
- A doctorate or professional degree 2%
Tools of the work
Technology you may use.
- Data base user interface and query software
- Spreadsheet software
- Office suite software
- Electronic mail software
- Presentation software
- Word processing software
- Graphics or photo imaging software
- Internet browser software
Opportunity near you
See where this work is growing.
Choose a state to compare the size of the field, annual openings, and expected hiring change.
- People doing this work
- 2,400
- Job openings each year
- 380
- Expected hiring change, 2022–2032
- 4.3%
Compare every available state
| State | People doing it | Job openings each year | Expected change |
|---|---|---|---|
| California | 2,400 | 380 | 4.3% |
| Florida | 1,150 | 180 | 10.6% |
| Georgia | 810 | 130 | 2.5% |
| Washington | 800 | 140 | 8.1% |
| Oklahoma | 760 | 120 | 2.7% |
| Nebraska | 710 | 110 | 7.6% |
| Texas | 710 | 110 | 7.6% |
| Missouri | 680 | 110 | 3.0% |
| Iowa | 670 | 110 | — |
| Puerto Rico | 550 | 90 | 10.0% |
| Pennsylvania | 420 | 70 | 2.4% |
| New York | 390 | 10 | 18.2% |
| Alabama | 380 | 60 | 2.7% |
| Michigan | 380 | 60 | — |
| Wisconsin | 370 | 60 | 8.8% |
| North Carolina | 340 | 50 | — |
| Tennessee | 310 | 50 | 3.3% |
| Louisiana | 280 | 40 | 3.7% |
| Minnesota | 280 | 50 | — |
| Kansas | 270 | 40 | 3.8% |
| Illinois | 260 | 40 | 4.0% |
| Idaho | 240 | 40 | 9.1% |
| South Carolina | 240 | 40 | 9.1% |
| Maryland | 230 | 40 | 9.5% |
| Colorado | 220 | 40 | 4.8% |
| Ohio | 220 | 30 | — |
| Indiana | 200 | 30 | 5.3% |
| Kentucky | 200 | 30 | — |
| Arkansas | 190 | 30 | — |
| Arizona | 180 | 30 | 5.9% |
| North Dakota | 180 | 30 | 12.5% |
| Utah | 180 | 30 | 5.9% |
| New Mexico | 150 | 20 | 7.1% |
| Oregon | 140 | 20 | 7.7% |
| Wyoming | 120 | 20 | — |
| Delaware | 90 | 10 | — |
| Maine | 60 | 10 | — |
| South Dakota | 60 | 10 | — |
| Vermont | 50 | 10 | — |
| Nevada | 30 | 10 | 50.0% |
Career to college
Build a path toward this work.
Start with a related major, then compare colleges where students complete that field.
Where to study
Colleges with strong activity in these fields.
Start with program size, admission, and likely cost. Open a college for the full picture.
Kansas State University
- Degrees each year
- 29
- Admit rate
- 79%
- Annual cost after aid
- $15,000
Program entryOpen major
Open college OHOhio State University-Main Campus
- Degrees each year
- 4
- Admit rate
- 51%
- Annual cost after aid
- $10,000
Program entryOpen major
Open college TXAngelo State University
- Degrees each year
- 1
- Admit rate
- 79%
- Annual cost after aid
- $15,000
Program entryOpen major
Open collegeCompare every college offering agricultural and food products processing