Food chemist vs senior chemist

The differences between food chemists and senior chemists can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. Additionally, a senior chemist has an average salary of $91,008, which is higher than the $62,727 average annual salary of a food chemist.

The top three skills for a food chemist include laboratory equipment, FDA and sops. The most important skills for a senior chemist are method development, laboratory equipment, and HPLC.

Food chemist vs senior chemist overview

	Food Chemist	Senior Chemist
Yearly salary	$62,727	$91,008
Hourly rate	$30.16	$43.75
Growth rate	6%	6%
Number of jobs	61,028	12,823
Job satisfaction	-	-
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 79%	Bachelor's Degree, 71%
Average age	42	42
Years of experience	-	-

Food chemist vs senior chemist salary

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

	Food Chemist	Senior Chemist
Average salary	$62,727	$91,008
Salary range	Between $44,000 And $87,000	Between $67,000 And $123,000
Highest paying City	Vancouver, WA	Fremont, CA
Highest paying state	Delaware	Vermont
Best paying company	Cargill	Google
Best paying industry	-	Manufacturing

Differences between food chemist and senior chemist education

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

	Food Chemist	Senior Chemist
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 79%	Bachelor's Degree, 71%
Most common major	Chemistry	Chemistry
Most common college	University of Southern California	University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill

Food chemist vs senior chemist demographics

Here are the differences between food chemists' and senior chemists' demographics:

	Food Chemist	Senior Chemist
Average age	42	42
Gender ratio	Male, 57.3% Female, 42.7%	Male, 67.6% Female, 32.4%
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, 7.8% Unknown, 4.6% Hispanic or Latino, 9.3% Asian, 22.3% White, 55.7% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.2%
LGBT Percentage	5%	5%

Differences between food chemist and senior 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.

Senior chemist example responsibilities.

Manage an analytical laboratory, which include SEM-EDS, GC-MS, GPC, FT-IR, ICP-MS, TGA and DSC equipment.
Conduct GC-MS, TGA, and FTIR, UV/Vis spectroscopic analysis of extractables and elemental impurities.
Develop Simethicone assay method by FT-IR in liquid dosage.
Used EPA methods for actinide, technetium, strontium, and tritium determination.
Prepare submission documentation, including CMC sections, for IDE and PMA submissions.
Supervise mobile lab team of analysts at various EPA super fund site locations for PCB and halo-hydrocarbons analysis testing.

Food chemist vs senior chemist skills

Common food chemist skills

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

Common senior chemist skills

Method Development, 8%
Laboratory Equipment, 6%
HPLC, 5%
Analytical Methods, 5%
R, 4%
GMP, 4%

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Food Chemist vs Senior Chemist

Updated January 8, 2025

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