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Agricultural Scientists - Are You Interested in a Career As a Food Scientist?

Saturday, September 4, 2010 5:08 AM Posted by Andy Subandono

By Alex Newman

Food scientists are responsible for maintaining the integrity of the American food supply, and they will study farm crops and animals in order to improve their quality and yields. These agricultural scientists will also discover ways to conserve soil and other nutrients and how to convert raw agricultural materials into healthy food products for the American people.

In the past 20 years, agricultural science has been booming field as an increased desire to develop biofuels such as ethanol have required the services of food scientists. Environmental remediation, which involves the reclamation of damaged land as a result of mining or other pollution, is another area of expansion.

Nanotechnology is also revolutionizing the field of ag science, as manufacturing technology attempts to improve food yields and to control pests. Most individuals will work in research and development, and developing new foodstuffs and agricultural chemicals.

Food scientists will predominately work in processing industries, finding better ways to package and store food for consumer consumption. They will also analyze the nutritional contents of various foods in order to try to increase the nutritional value of certain consumable products.

Plant scientists are responsible for finding new uses for fiber crops, and they will try to improve the nutritional yield and quality of crops in seed. Soil scientists are responsible for analyzing the composition of soils and improving their quality, in addition to protecting topsoil from erosion and environmental damage.

These professionals will typically work outdoors 40 hours a week investigating new production techniques, and the government hires a number of these individuals in order to improve the quality of the nation's food and farmland. Agricultural scientist training will usually require a master's degree in order to work in research fields, however, some animal scientists require no more than an associate's degree.

In 2006, these professionals had about 33,000 jobs in America, with about 15% working for Federal and state governments. Another 15% of these individuals are self-employed. working as consultants for food production companies. Future job prospects for agricultural scientists should be bright, and growth is expected at 9% over the next 10 years.

In 2006, the middle 50th percentile of employees earned between $37,740 and $76,960. The National Association of Colleges and Employers found that offers for entry level food scientists came to $37,908 a year.

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