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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.
Also Known As:
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
Shipping Point Inspector
Wages
Annual wages for Agricultural Inspectors in United States
Job Outlook
Below Average
New job opportunities are less likely in the future
United States
2034 Projected Employment
14,900
2% Change From 2024
Explore Agricultural Inspectors video
Tasks you might complete in a day.
- Inspect the cleanliness and practices of establishment employees.
- Write reports of findings and recommendations and advise farmers, growers, or processors of corrective action to be taken.
- Collect samples from animals, plants, or products and route them to laboratories for microbiological assessment, ingredient verification, or other testing.
- Interpret and enforce government acts and regulations and explain required standards to agricultural workers.
- Inspect agricultural commodities or related operations, as well as fish or logging operations, for compliance with laws and regulations governing health, quality, and safety.
- Label and seal graded products and issue official grading certificates.
- Monitor the operations and sanitary conditions of slaughtering or meat processing plants.
- Verify that transportation and handling procedures meet regulatory requirements.
- Inspect or test horticultural products or livestock to detect harmful diseases, chemical residues, or infestations and to determine the quality of products or animals.
- Collect samples from animals, plants, or products and route them to laboratories for microbiological assessment, ingredient verification, or other testing.
- Testify in legal proceedings.
- Compare product recipes with government-approved formulas or recipes to determine acceptability.
- Monitor the grading performed by company employees to verify conformance to standards.
- Inspect food products and processing procedures to determine whether products are safe to eat.
- Label and seal graded products and issue official grading certificates.
- Take emergency actions, such as closing production facilities, if product safety is compromised.
- Examine, weigh, and measure commodities, such as poultry, eggs, meat, or seafood to certify qualities, grades, and weights.
- Inspect or test horticultural products or livestock to detect harmful diseases, chemical residues, or infestations and to determine the quality of products or animals.
- Write reports of findings and recommendations and advise farmers, growers, or processors of corrective action to be taken.
- Provide consultative services in areas such as equipment or product evaluation, plant construction or layout, or food safety systems.
Subject areas you may need to master.
- 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.
- 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.
- 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.
- Design - Knowledge of design techniques, tools, and principles involved in production of precision technical plans, blueprints, drawings, and models.
- 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.
- 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.
- 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.
- Sociology and Anthropology - Knowledge of group behavior and dynamics, societal trends and influences, human migrations, ethnicity, cultures, and their history and origins.
- Transportation - Knowledge of principles and methods for moving people or goods by air, rail, sea, or road, including the relative costs and benefits.
- 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.
- Computers and Electronics - Knowledge of circuit boards, processors, chips, electronic equipment, and computer hardware and software, including applications and programming.
- Law and Government - Knowledge of laws, legal codes, court procedures, precedents, government regulations, executive orders, agency rules, and the democratic political process.
- 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.
- 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.
- 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.
- Mechanical - Knowledge of machines and tools, including their designs, uses, repair, and maintenance.
- 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.
- Telecommunications - Knowledge of transmission, broadcasting, switching, control, and operation of telecommunications systems.
- Fine Arts - Knowledge of the theory and techniques required to compose, produce, and perform works of music, dance, visual arts, drama, and sculpture.
- 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.
- 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.
- 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.
- 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.
- 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.
- History and Archeology - Knowledge of historical events and their causes, indicators, and effects on civilizations and cultures.
- Economics and Accounting - Knowledge of economic and accounting principles and practices, the financial markets, banking, and the analysis and reporting of financial data.
- 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.
- English Language - Knowledge of the structure and content of the English language including the meaning and spelling of words, and rules of composition and grammar.
- 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.
Strengths you may need in this role.
- Science - Using scientific rules and strategies to solve problems.
- Coordination - Changing what is done based on other people's actions.
- Equipment Selection - Deciding what kind of tools and equipment are needed to do a job.
- Complex Problem Solving - Noticing a problem and figuring out the best way to solve it.
- Judgment and Decision Making - Thinking about the pros and cons of different options and picking the best one.
- Reading Comprehension - Reading work-related information.
- Active Learning - Figuring out how to use new ideas or things.
- Equipment Maintenance - Planning and doing the basic maintenance on equipment.
- Active Listening - Listening to others, not interrupting, and asking good questions.
- Management of Personnel Resources - Selecting and managing the best workers for a job.
- Repairing - Repairing machines or systems using the right tools.
- Negotiation - Bringing people together to solve differences.
- Mathematics - Using math to solve problems.
- Installation - Installing equipment, machines, wiring, or computer programs.
- Programming - Writing computer programs.
- Critical Thinking - Thinking about the pros and cons of different ways to solve a problem.
- Persuasion - Talking people into changing their minds or their behavior.
- Operations Monitoring - Watching gauges, dials, or display screens to make sure a machine is working.
- Monitoring - Keeping track of how well people and/or groups are doing in order to make improvements.
- Operations Analysis - Figuring out what a product or service needs to be able to do.
- Service Orientation - Looking for ways to help people.
- Learning Strategies - Using the best training or teaching strategies for learning new things.
- Social Perceptiveness - Understanding people's reactions.
- Speaking - Talking to others.
- Technology Design - Making equipment and technology useful for customers.
- Writing - Writing things for co-workers or customers.
- Operation and Control - Using equipment or systems.
- Systems Analysis - Figuring out how a system should work and how changes in the future will affect it.
- Systems Evaluation - Measuring how well a system is working and how to improve it.
- Time Management - Managing your time and the time of other people.
- Management of Financial Resources - Making spending decisions and keeping track of what is spent.
- Quality Control Analysis - Testing how well a product or service works.
- Instructing - Teaching people how to do something.
- Troubleshooting - Figuring out what is causing equipment, machines, wiring, or computer programs to not work.
- Management of Material Resources - Managing equipment and materials.
- Problem Sensitivity - Noticing when problems happen.
- Fluency of Ideas - Coming up with lots of ideas.
- Number Facility - Adding, subtracting, multiplying, or dividing.
- Memorization - Remembering words, numbers, pictures, or steps.
- Wrist-Finger Speed - Making fast, simple, repeated movements of your fingers, hands, and wrists.
- Oral Comprehension - Listening and understanding what people say.
- Static Strength - Lifting, pushing, pulling, or carrying.
- Gross Body Equilibrium - Keeping your balance or staying upright.
- Sound Localization - Noticing the direction that a sound came from.
- Category Flexibility - Grouping things in different ways.
- Visualization - Imagining how something will look after it is moved around or changed.
- Explosive Strength - Jumping, sprinting, or throwing something.
- Mathematical Reasoning - Choosing the right type of math to solve a problem.
- Selective Attention - Paying attention to something without being distracted.
- Stamina - Exercising for a long time without getting out of breath.
- Speech Clarity - Speaking clearly.
- Auditory Attention - Paying attention to one sound while there are other distracting sounds.
- Speech Recognition - Recognizing spoken words.
- Visual Color Discrimination - Noticing the difference between colors, including shades and brightness.
- Peripheral Vision - Seeing something to your side when your are looking ahead.
- Originality - Creating new and original ideas.
- Arm-Hand Steadiness - Keeping your arm or hand steady.
- Dynamic Flexibility - Quickly and repeatedly bending, stretching, twisting, or reaching out with your body, arms, and/or legs.
- Depth Perception - Deciding which thing is closer or farther away from you, or deciding how far away it is from you.
- Written Comprehension - Reading and understanding what is written.
- Perceptual Speed - Quickly comparing groups of letters, numbers, pictures, or other things.
- Near Vision - Seeing details up close.
- Speed of Closure - Quickly knowing what you are looking at.
- Manual Dexterity - Holding or moving items with your hands.
- Written Expression - Communicating by writing.
- Finger Dexterity - Putting together small parts with your fingers.
- Spatial Orientation - Knowing where things are around you.
- Dynamic Strength - Exercising for a long time without your muscles getting tired.
- Glare Sensitivity - Seeing something even if there is a glare or very bright light.
- Hearing Sensitivity - Telling the difference between sounds.
- Deductive Reasoning - Using rules to solve problems.
- Speed of Limb Movement - Quickly moving your arms and legs.
- Gross Body Coordination - Moving your arms, legs, and mid-section together while your whole body is moving.
- Flexibility of Closure - Seeing hidden patterns.
- Multilimb Coordination - Using your arms and/or legs together while sitting, standing, or lying down.
- Far Vision - Seeing details that are far away.
- Oral Expression - Communicating by speaking.
- Information Ordering - Ordering or arranging things.
- Response Orientation - Quickly deciding if you should move your hand, foot, or other body part.
- Trunk Strength - Using your lower back and stomach.
- Time Sharing - Doing two or more things at the same time.
- Reaction Time - Quickly moving your hand, finger, or foot based on a sound, light, picture or other command.
- Extent Flexibility - Bending, stretching, twisting, or reaching with your body, arms, and/or legs.
- Inductive Reasoning - Making general rules or coming up with answers from lots of detailed information.
- Control Precision - Quickly changing the controls of a machine, car, truck or boat.
- Rate Control - Changing when and how fast you move based on how something else is moving.
- Night Vision - Seeing at night or under low light.
Average Education Attained
Highest level of education earned by people in this career.
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Content sourced from United States Department of Labor Employment and Training Administration ("DOLETA") and the Minnesota Department of Employment & Economic Development ("DEED")