Food chemist vs quality control chemist

The differences between food chemists and quality control chemists can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. Additionally, a food chemist has an average salary of $62,727, which is higher than the $58,892 average annual salary of a quality control chemist.

The top three skills for a food chemist include laboratory equipment, FDA and sops. The most important skills for a quality control chemist are QC, HPLC, and lab equipment.

Food chemist vs quality control chemist overview

	Food Chemist	Quality Control Chemist
Yearly salary	$62,727	$58,892
Hourly rate	$30.16	$28.31
Growth rate	6%	6%
Number of jobs	61,028	90,467
Job satisfaction	-	-
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 79%	Bachelor's Degree, 82%
Average age	42	42
Years of experience	-	-

Food chemist vs quality control chemist salary

Food chemists and quality control chemists have different pay scales, as shown below.

	Food Chemist	Quality Control Chemist
Average salary	$62,727	$58,892
Salary range	Between $44,000 And $87,000	Between $45,000 And $75,000
Highest paying City	Vancouver, WA	North Kingstown, RI
Highest paying state	Delaware	Vermont
Best paying company	Cargill	Hallstar
Best paying industry	-	Manufacturing

Differences between food chemist and quality control chemist education

There are a few differences between a food chemist and a quality control chemist in terms of educational background:

	Food Chemist	Quality Control Chemist
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 79%	Bachelor's Degree, 82%
Most common major	Chemistry	Chemistry
Most common college	University of Southern California	University of Southern California

Food chemist vs quality control chemist demographics

Here are the differences between food chemists' and quality control chemists' demographics:

	Food Chemist	Quality Control Chemist
Average age	42	42
Gender ratio	Male, 57.3% Female, 42.7%	Male, 56.5% Female, 43.5%
Race ratio	Black or African American, 7.8% Unknown, 4.6% Hispanic or Latino, 9.4% Asian, 18.2% White, 59.7% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.2%	Black or African American, 7.7% Unknown, 4.6% Hispanic or Latino, 9.3% Asian, 21.4% White, 56.8% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.2%
LGBT Percentage	5%	5%

Differences between food chemist and quality control chemist duties and responsibilities

Food chemist example responsibilities.

Manage food chemistry testing laboratory and measure clenbuterol levels in beef samples by HPLC
Position are focused around ensuring that the different products being test pass the specifications put in place by the FDA.
Provide calculated electronic absorption (UV/Vis) spectra for molecular candidates suspect to be impurity chromophores in a commercial nylon process.
Establish extraction profiles and develop appropriate QC methods for product certification and annual qualification.

Quality control chemist example responsibilities.

Manage investigations of out of spec results and complaints in CatsWEB CAPA management system.
Verify raw material compliance utilizing ICP, FTIR, and USP wet chemistry methods.
Perform analysis utilizing UV/VIS, FTIR, Karl Fischer, and TLC.
Perform the potency studies, dissolution, and uniformity, by using HPLC, GC, and UV/VIS.
Analyze active ingredients in sunscreens, volatile organics, and preservatives utilizing ICP, GC, NIRS, and HPLC.
Execute dissolution and disintegration testing and microbiology testing with compliance requirements within GMP, GLP, and FDA regulatory environments.

Food chemist vs quality control chemist skills

Common food chemist skills

Laboratory Equipment, 18%
FDA, 17%
Sops, 13%
R, 9%
HPLC, 9%
Food Products, 8%

Common quality control chemist skills

QC, 9%
HPLC, 7%
Lab Equipment, 7%
GMP, 6%
Analytical Methods, 5%
UV/Vis, 4%

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Food Chemist vs Quality Control Chemist

Updated January 8, 2025

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