Occupational Employment and Wages, 2002

19-4011 Agricultural and Food Science Technicians

Work with agricultural scientists in food, fiber, and animal research, production, and processing; assist with animal breeding and nutrition work; under supervision, conduct tests and experiments to improve yield and quality of crops or to increase the resistance of plants and animals to disease or insects. Include technicians who assist food scientists or food technologists in the research, development, production technology, quality control, packaging, processing, and use of foods.

National estimates for this occupation
Industry profile for this occupation
State profile for this occupation
Metropolitan area profile for this occupation

National estimates for this occupation: Top

Employment estimate and mean wage estimates for this occupation:

Employment (1) Employment
RSE (3)
Mean hourly
wage
Mean annual
wage (2)
Wage RSE (3)
15,990 3.4 % $14.91 $31,010 1.0 %

Percentile wage estimates for this occupation:

Percentile 10% 25% 50%
(Median)
75% 90%
Hourly Wage $8.78 $10.82 $13.74 $17.81 $23.10
Annual Wage (2) $18,270 $22,510 $28,580 $37,040 $48,060

Industry profile for this occupation: Top

Industries with the highest levels of employment in this occupation:

Industry Employment Hourly mean wage Annual mean wage Employment rank Wage rank
Colleges and universities 2,850 $15.36 $31,940 1 13
State government (OES designation) 1,950 $13.61 $28,310 2 24
Scientific research and development services 1,830 $15.90 $33,070 3 11
Dairy product manufacturing 1,090 $14.80 $30,780 4 17
Misc. nondurable goods merchant wholesalers 810 $13.93 $28,980 5 22

Top paying industries for this occupation:

Industry Employment Hourly mean wage Annual mean wage Employment rank Wage rank
Basic chemical manufacturing 40 $21.36 $44,420 28 1
Management of companies and enterprises 360 $20.26 $42,140 13 2
Agricultural chemical manufacturing 80 $18.77 $39,050 25 3
Warehousing and storage 30 $18.16 $37,760 29 4
Bakeries and tortilla manufacturing 190 $17.50 $36,400 19 5

State profile for this occupation: Top

States with the highest concentration of workers in this occupation:

State Employment Hourly mean wage Annual mean wage Percent of State employment Wage rank within State
Iowa 840 $16.56 $34,440 0.059% 262
Idaho 300 $14.64 $30,460 0.053% 269
Nebraska 450 $13.88 $28,880 0.052% 317
North Dakota 120 $12.58 $26,170 0.038% 304
Hawaii 190 $14.88 $30,950 0.035% 322

Top paying States for this occupation:

State Employment Hourly mean wage Annual mean wage Percent of State employment Wage rank within State
Connecticut 70 $20.50 $42,640 0.004% 248
New Jersey 310 $18.51 $38,510 0.008% 356
Arizona 40 $18.00 $37,450 0.002% 242
Maryland 580 $17.97 $37,370 0.024% 299
Delaware (6) $17.33 $36,040 (6) 226

Metropolitan area profile for this occupation: Top

Metropolitan areas with the highest concentration of workers in this occupation:

MSA Employment Hourly mean wage Annual mean wage Percent of MSA employment
Fresno, CA MSA 350 $13.94 $28,990 0.101%
Visalia-Tulare-Porterville, CA MSA 120 $14.36 $29,860 0.100%
Goldsboro, NC MSA 40 $11.88 $24,710 0.093%
Madison, WI MSA 230 $14.56 $30,290 0.083%
Lafayette, IN MSA 70 $13.02 $27,080 0.079%

Top paying Metropolitan areas for this occupation:

MSA Employment Hourly mean wage Annual mean wage Percent of MSA employment
Boston, MA-NH PMSA (6) $19.89 $41,360 (6)
Vallejo-Fairfield-Napa, CA PMSA 80 $19.79 $41,170 0.043%
St. Louis, MO-IL MSA 160 $19.72 $41,010 0.013%
Oakland, CA PMSA (6) $19.67 $40,910 (6)
Washington, DC-MD-VA-WV PMSA 410 $19.37 $40,290 0.015%

About 2002 National, State, and Metropolitan Area Occupational Employment and Wage Estimates

To see profiles of other occupations, select from the major groups below:

These estimates are calculated with data collected from employers in all industry sectors in metropolitan and non-metropolitan areas in every State and the District of Columbia. The top five employment and wage figures are provided above. The complete list is available in the downloadable Excel files(XLS).

Percentile wage estimates show the percentage of workers in an occupation that earn less than a given wage and the percentage that earn more. The median wage is the 50th percentile wage estimate—50 percent of workers earn less than the median and 50 percent of workers earn more than the median. More about percentile wages.


(1) Data for detailed occupations does not sum to the totals because the totals include data for occupations not shown separately. Estimates do not include self-employed workers.

(2) Annual wages have been calculated by multiplying the hourly mean wage by a "year-round, full-time" hours figure of 2,080 hours; for those occupations where there is not an hourly mean wage published, the annual wage has been directly calculated from the reported survey data.

(3) The relative standard error (RSE) is a measure of the reliability of a survey statistic. The smaller the relative standard error, the more precise the estimate.

(6) Estimates not released.

All Life, Physical, and Social Science Occupations

2002 State Occupational Employment and Wage Estimates

2002 Metropolitan Area Occupational Employment and Wage Estimates

2002 National Industry-Specific Occupational Employment and Wage Estimates

List of Occupations in SOC Code Number Order

List of Occupations in Alphabetical Order

Download 2002 Occupational Employment and Wage Estimates in Zipped Excel files

Technical notes

 

Last Modified Date: November 26, 2003