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Food Science Technicians

Work with food scientists or technologists to perform standardized qualitative and quantitative tests to determine physical or chemical properties of food or beverage products. Includes technicians who assist in research and development of production technology, quality control, packaging, processing, and use of foods.

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    Work Activities

    Work Activities

    • Perform regular maintenance of laboratory equipment by inspecting, calibrating, cleaning, or sterilizing.
    • Order supplies needed to maintain inventories in laboratories or in storage facilities of food or beverage processing plants.
    • Measure, test, or weigh bottles, cans, or other containers to ensure that hardness, strength, or dimensions meet specifications.
    • Compute moisture or salt content, percentages of ingredients, formulas, or other product factors, using mathematical and chemical procedures.
    • Examine chemical or biological samples to identify cell structures or to locate bacteria or extraneous material, using a microscope.
    • Analyze test results to classify products or compare results with standard tables.
    • Provide assistance to food scientists or technologists in research and development, production technology, or quality control.
    • Mix, blend, or cultivate ingredients to make reagents or to manufacture food or beverage products.
    • Record or compile test results or prepare graphs, charts, or reports.
    • Train newly hired laboratory personnel.
    • Supervise other food science technicians.
    • Taste or smell foods or beverages to ensure that flavors meet specifications or to select samples with specific characteristics.
    • Maintain records of testing results or other documents as required by state or other governing agencies.
    • Examine chemical or biological samples to identify cell structures or to locate bacteria or extraneous material, using a microscope.
    • Monitor and control temperature of products.
    • Conduct standardized tests on food, beverages, additives, or preservatives to ensure compliance with standards and regulations regarding factors such as color, texture, or nutrients.
    • Prepare or incubate slides with cell cultures.
    • Perform regular maintenance of laboratory equipment by inspecting, calibrating, cleaning, or sterilizing.

    Skills

    • Programming

      Writing computer programs.

    • Quality Control Analysis

      Testing how well a product or service works.

    • Monitoring

      Keeping track of how well people and/or groups are doing in order to make improvements.

    • Negotiation

      Bringing people together to solve differences.

    • Operations Analysis

      Figuring out what a product or service needs to be able to do.

    • Operation and Control

      Using equipment or systems.

    • Management of Personnel Resources

      Selecting and managing the best workers for a job.

    • Persuasion

      Talking people into changing their minds or their behavior.

    • Service Orientation

      Looking for ways to help people.

    • Reading Comprehension

      Reading work-related information.

    • Learning Strategies

      Using the best training or teaching strategies for learning new things.

    • Management of Material Resources

      Managing equipment and materials.

    • Coordination

      Changing what is done based on other people's actions.

    • Social Perceptiveness

      Understanding people's reactions.

    • Science

      Using scientific rules and strategies to solve problems.

    • Repairing

      Repairing machines or systems using the right tools.

    • Complex Problem Solving

      Noticing a problem and figuring out the best way to solve it.

    • Technology Design

      Making equipment and technology useful for customers.

    • Equipment Maintenance

      Planning and doing the basic maintenance on equipment.

    • Management of Financial Resources

      Making spending decisions and keeping track of what is spent.

    • Systems Evaluation

      Measuring how well a system is working and how to improve it.

    • Judgment and Decision Making

      Thinking about the pros and cons of different options and picking the best one.

    • Writing

      Writing things for co-workers or customers.

    • Time Management

      Managing your time and the time of other people.

    • Equipment Selection

      Deciding what kind of tools and equipment are needed to do a job.

    • Installation

      Installing equipment, machines, wiring, or computer programs.

    • Operations Monitoring

      Watching gauges, dials, or display screens to make sure a machine is working.

    • Troubleshooting

      Figuring out what is causing equipment, machines, wiring, or computer programs to not work.

    • Systems Analysis

      Figuring out how a system should work and how changes in the future will affect it.

    • Speaking

      Talking to others.

    • Critical Thinking

      Thinking about the pros and cons of different ways to solve a problem.

    • Active Listening

      Listening to others, not interrupting, and asking good questions.

    • Mathematics

      Using math to solve problems.

    • Active Learning

      Figuring out how to use new ideas or things.

    • Instructing

      Teaching people how to do something.

    WorkKeys®

    Applied Math
    N/A
    Workplace Documents
    N/A
    Graphic Literacy
    N/A

    Abilities

    • Night Vision

      Seeing at night or under low light.

    • Speech Recognition

      Recognizing spoken words.

    • Speed of Closure

      Quickly knowing what you are looking at.

    • Response Orientation

      Quickly deciding if you should move your hand, foot, or other body part.

    • Category Flexibility

      Grouping things in different ways.

    • Memorization

      Remembering words, numbers, pictures, or steps.

    • Trunk Strength

      Using your lower back and stomach.

    • Dynamic Flexibility

      Quickly and repeatedly bending, stretching, twisting, or reaching out with your body, arms, and/or legs.

    • Rate Control

      Changing when and how fast you move based on how something else is moving.

    • Dynamic Strength

      Exercising for a long time without your muscles getting tired.

    • Fluency of Ideas

      Coming up with lots of ideas.

    • Problem Sensitivity

      Noticing when problems happen.

    • Time Sharing

      Doing two or more things at the same time.

    • Wrist-Finger Speed

      Making fast, simple, repeated movements of your fingers, hands, and wrists.

    • Gross Body Coordination

      Moving your arms, legs, and mid-section together while your whole body is moving.

    • Far Vision

      Seeing details that are far away.

    • Perceptual Speed

      Quickly comparing groups of letters, numbers, pictures, or other things.

    • Multilimb Coordination

      Using your arms and/or legs together while sitting, standing, or lying down.

    • Reaction Time

      Quickly moving your hand, finger, or foot based on a sound, light, picture or other command.

    • Information Ordering

      Ordering or arranging things.

    • Visualization

      Imagining how something will look after it is moved around or changed.

    • Arm-Hand Steadiness

      Keeping your arm or hand steady.

    • Speed of Limb Movement

      Quickly moving your arms and legs.

    • Visual Color Discrimination

      Noticing the difference between colors, including shades and brightness.

    • Inductive Reasoning

      Making general rules or coming up with answers from lots of detailed information.

    • Depth Perception

      Deciding which thing is closer or farther away from you, or deciding how far away it is from you.

    • Hearing Sensitivity

      Telling the difference between sounds.

    • Peripheral Vision

      Seeing something to your side when your are looking ahead.

    • Sound Localization

      Noticing the direction that a sound came from.

    • Oral Comprehension

      Listening and understanding what people say.

    • Written Comprehension

      Reading and understanding what is written.

    • Oral Expression

      Communicating by speaking.

    • Deductive Reasoning

      Using rules to solve problems.

    • Auditory Attention

      Paying attention to one sound while there are other distracting sounds.

    • Speech Clarity

      Speaking clearly.

    • Mathematical Reasoning

      Choosing the right type of math to solve a problem.

    • Spatial Orientation

      Knowing where things are around you.

    • Finger Dexterity

      Putting together small parts with your fingers.

    • Explosive Strength

      Jumping, sprinting, or throwing something.

    • Stamina

      Exercising for a long time without getting out of breath.

    • Selective Attention

      Paying attention to something without being distracted.

    • Manual Dexterity

      Holding or moving items with your hands.

    • Static Strength

      Lifting, pushing, pulling, or carrying.

    • Near Vision

      Seeing details up close.

    • Number Facility

      Adding, subtracting, multiplying, or dividing.

    • Control Precision

      Quickly changing the controls of a machine, car, truck or boat.

    • Extent Flexibility

      Bending, stretching, twisting, or reaching with your body, arms, and/or legs.

    • Gross Body Equilibrium

      Keeping your balance or staying upright.

    • Written Expression

      Communicating by writing.

    • Originality

      Creating new and original ideas.

    • Flexibility of Closure

      Seeing hidden patterns.

    • Glare Sensitivity

      Seeing something even if there is a glare or very bright light.

    Knowledge

    • Mechanical

      Knowledge of machines and tools, including their designs, uses, repair, and maintenance.

    • Therapy and Counseling

      Knowledge of principles, methods, and procedures for diagnosis, treatment, and rehabilitation of physical and mental dysfunctions, and for career counseling and guidance.

    • Economics and Accounting

      Knowledge of economic and accounting principles and practices, the financial markets, banking, and the analysis and reporting of financial data.

    • History and Archeology

      Knowledge of historical events and their causes, indicators, and effects on civilizations and cultures.

    • Sales and Marketing

      Knowledge of principles and methods for showing, promoting, and selling products or services. This includes marketing strategy and tactics, product demonstration, sales techniques, and sales control systems.

    • English Language

      Knowledge of the structure and content of the English language including the meaning and spelling of words, rules of composition, and grammar.

    • Telecommunications

      Knowledge of transmission, broadcasting, switching, control, and operation of telecommunications systems.

    • Administration and Management

      Knowledge of business and management principles involved in strategic planning, resource allocation, human resources modeling, leadership technique, production methods, and coordination of people and resources.

    • Engineering and Technology

      Knowledge of the practical application of engineering science and technology. This includes applying principles, techniques, procedures, and equipment to the design and production of various goods and services.

    • Production and Processing

      Knowledge of raw materials, production processes, quality control, costs, and other techniques for maximizing the effective manufacture and distribution of goods.

    • Philosophy and Theology

      Knowledge of different philosophical systems and religions. This includes their basic principles, values, ethics, ways of thinking, customs, practices, and their impact on human culture.

    • Personnel and Human Resources

      Knowledge of principles and procedures for personnel recruitment, selection, training, compensation and benefits, labor relations and negotiation, and personnel information systems.

    • Chemistry

      Knowledge of the chemical composition, structure, and properties of substances and of the chemical processes and transformations that they undergo. This includes uses of chemicals and their interactions, danger signs, production techniques, and disposal methods.

    • Education and Training

      Knowledge of principles and methods for curriculum and training design, teaching and instruction for individuals and groups, and the measurement of training effects.

    • Law and Government

      Knowledge of laws, legal codes, court procedures, precedents, government regulations, executive orders, agency rules, and the democratic political process.

    • Sociology and Anthropology

      Knowledge of group behavior and dynamics, societal trends and influences, human migrations, ethnicity, cultures, and their history and origins.

    • Fine Arts

      Knowledge of the theory and techniques required to compose, produce, and perform works of music, dance, visual arts, drama, and sculpture.

    • Geography

      Knowledge of principles and methods for describing the features of land, sea, and air masses, including their physical characteristics, locations, interrelationships, and distribution of plant, animal, and human life.

    • Psychology

      Knowledge of human behavior and performance; individual differences in ability, personality, and interests; learning and motivation; psychological research methods; and the assessment and treatment of behavioral and affective disorders.

    • Foreign Language

      Knowledge of the structure and content of a foreign (non-English) language including the meaning and spelling of words, rules of composition and grammar, and pronunciation.

    • Computers and Electronics

      Knowledge of circuit boards, processors, chips, electronic equipment, and computer hardware and software, including applications and programming.

    • Food Production

      Knowledge of techniques and equipment for planting, growing, and harvesting food products (both plant and animal) for consumption, including storage/handling techniques.

    • Biology

      Knowledge of plant and animal organisms, their tissues, cells, functions, interdependencies, and interactions with each other and the environment.

    • Administrative

      Knowledge of administrative and office procedures and systems such as word processing, managing files and records, stenography and transcription, designing forms, and workplace terminology.

    • Building and Construction

      Knowledge of materials, methods, and the tools involved in the construction or repair of houses, buildings, or other structures such as highways and roads.

    • Customer and Personal Service

      Knowledge of principles and processes for providing customer and personal services. This includes customer needs assessment, meeting quality standards for services, and evaluation of customer satisfaction.

    • Mathematics

      Knowledge of arithmetic, algebra, geometry, calculus, statistics, and their applications.

    • Medicine and Dentistry

      Knowledge of the information and techniques needed to diagnose and treat human injuries, diseases, and deformities. This includes symptoms, treatment alternatives, drug properties and interactions, and preventive health-care measures.

    • Transportation

      Knowledge of principles and methods for moving people or goods by air, rail, sea, or road, including the relative costs and benefits.

    • Physics

      Knowledge and prediction of physical principles, laws, their interrelationships, and applications to understanding fluid, material, and atmospheric dynamics, and mechanical, electrical, atomic and sub-atomic structures and processes.

    • Public Safety and Security

      Knowledge of relevant equipment, policies, procedures, and strategies to promote effective local, state, or national security operations for the protection of people, data, property, and institutions.

    • Design

      Knowledge of design techniques, tools, and principles involved in production of precision technical plans, blueprints, drawings, and models.

    • Communications and Media

      Knowledge of media production, communication, and dissemination techniques and methods. This includes alternative ways to inform and entertain via written, oral, and visual media.

    Career Video

    Additional videos and more information available on CareerOneStop

    Pay

    • Ohio Annual Salary 65050/yr
    • Typical Salary
    • Ohio Hourly Wage 31.27/hr
    • Typical Hourly Wage

    Ohio Employment Trends

    • Currently Employed 560
    • Yearly Projected Openings 70

    Typical Education

    Personality

    Realistic: People interested in this work like activities that include practical, hands-on problems and solutions.They do well at jobs that need:
    • Attention to Detail
    • Dependability
    • Independence
    • Integrity
    • Adaptability/Flexibility
    • Analytical Thinking

    Tools

    • Anaerobic jars or accessories
    • Bench scales
    • Benchtop centrifuges
    • Binocular light compound microscopes
    • Calorimeters
    • Chemical absorption gas analyzers
    • Colorimeters
    • Decontamination shower
    • Desktop computers
    • Dropping pipettes
    • Electronic counters
    • Electronic toploading balances
    • Extracting equipment for laboratories
    • Eyewashers or eye wash stations
    • Fire extinguishers
    • Fluorescent microscopes
    • Forced air or mechanical convection general purpose incubators
    • Fume hoods or cupboards
    • Gas burners
    • Goggles
    • Handheld thermometer
    • Heating or drying equipment or accessories
    • Homogenizers
    • Inoculating devices
    • Lab coats
    • Laboratory balances
    • Laboratory beakers
    • Laboratory blenders or emulsifiers
    • Laboratory burets
    • Laboratory clamps
    • Laboratory flasks
    • Laboratory funnels
    • Laboratory hotplates
    • Laboratory knives
    • Laboratory mechanical convection ovens
    • Laboratory mills
    • Laboratory mixers
    • Laboratory separators
    • Laboratory stirring rods
    • Laboratory tongs
    • Laser printers
    • Magnetic spin bars or stir bars or stirring beads
    • Magnetic stirrers
    • Magnetic tools
    • Metal detectors
    • Microbiology analyzers
    • Microplate readers
    • Microscope slides
    • Moisture balances
    • Moisture meters
    • Multipurpose or general test tubes
    • Notebook computers
    • Optical diffraction apparatus
    • Pasteur or transfer pipettes
    • Personal computers
    • Pestle or mortars
    • Petri plates or dishes
    • Protective gloves
    • Psychrometers
    • Remote reading thermometers
    • Specialty plates for bacteria
    • Steam autoclaves or sterilizers
    • Triple beam balances
    • Ultraviolet UV lamps
    • Vacuum ovens
    • Viscosimeters
    • Water analysis systems
    • Water baths
    • pH meters

    Technology

    • Analytical or scientific software
    • Application server software
    • Cloud-based management software
    • Data base user interface and query software
    • Electronic mail software
    • Enterprise resource planning ERP software
    • Graphical user interface development software
    • Graphics or photo imaging software
    • Object or component oriented development software
    • Office suite software
    • Operating system software
    • Presentation software
    • Process mapping and design software
    • Spreadsheet software
    • Web platform development software
    • Word processing software
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