Food inspector vs agricultural commodities inspector

The differences between food inspectors and agricultural commodities inspectors can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. It typically takes 1-2 years to become both a food inspector and an agricultural commodities inspector. Additionally, an agricultural commodities inspector has an average salary of $46,036, which is higher than the $43,824 average annual salary of a food inspector.

The top three skills for a food inspector include food handling, federal laws and food preparation. The most important skills for an agricultural commodities inspector are public health, inspection procedures, and commodities.

Food inspector vs agricultural commodities inspector overview

	Food Inspector	Agricultural Commodities Inspector
Yearly salary	$43,824	$46,036
Hourly rate	$21.07	$22.13
Growth rate	-3%	-
Number of jobs	64,809	16,793
Job satisfaction	5	-
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 47%	Bachelor's Degree, 40%
Average age	50	50
Years of experience	2	2

Food inspector vs agricultural commodities inspector salary

Food inspectors and agricultural commodities inspectors have different pay scales, as shown below.

	Food Inspector	Agricultural Commodities Inspector
Average salary	$43,824	$46,036
Salary range	Between $27,000 And $70,000	Between $26,000 And $79,000
Highest paying City	Harrisburg, PA	-
Highest paying state	Pennsylvania	-
Best paying company	Office of Human Services	-
Best paying industry	Government	-

Differences between food inspector and agricultural commodities inspector education

There are a few differences between a food inspector and an agricultural commodities inspector in terms of educational background:

	Food Inspector	Agricultural Commodities Inspector
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 47%	Bachelor's Degree, 40%
Most common major	Business	Criminal Justice
Most common college	Stanford University	Texas A&M University

Food inspector vs agricultural commodities inspector demographics

Here are the differences between food inspectors' and agricultural commodities inspectors' demographics:

	Food Inspector	Agricultural Commodities Inspector
Average age	50	50
Gender ratio	Male, 52.9% Female, 47.1%	Male, 54.4% Female, 45.6%
Race ratio	Black or African American, 13.2% Unknown, 3.7% Hispanic or Latino, 20.9% Asian, 5.5% White, 56.0% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.7%	Black or African American, 10.9% Unknown, 3.7% Hispanic or Latino, 23.3% Asian, 5.0% White, 56.5% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.7%
LGBT Percentage	8%	8%

Differences between food inspector and agricultural commodities inspector duties and responsibilities

Food inspector example responsibilities.

Provide education to plant management and employees in regard to federal regulations, HACCP and SSOP.
Perform health and safety verification sampling and tests for detection of specific microbes, residues or contaminants.
Identify and document deviations from plant's written procedures outline in HACCP and SSOP plans to ensure compliance with federal regulations.
Perform CSI duties as needed.
Report information from inspection shifts to plant DVM.
Have knowledge of FSIS procedures and can adapt to current procedures

Agricultural commodities inspector example responsibilities.

Issue paperwork for loads of commodities being ship to export countries.
Act as a neutral third-party while determining the condition and quality of agricultural commodities
Conduct entomological surveys for various species across Nevada utilizing various technologies including GPS and PDA data gathering techniques.
Audit annually by the FDA for performance quality assessments and standardization.

Food inspector vs agricultural commodities inspector skills

Common food inspector skills

Food Handling, 31%
Federal Laws, 15%
Food Preparation, 14%
Sanitation Procedures, 10%
Human Consumption, 6%
Food Animals, 3%

Common agricultural commodities inspector skills

Public Health, 61%
Inspection Procedures, 29%
Commodities, 10%

Food Inspector vs. similar jobs

Food Inspector related careers

Food Inspector related jobs

What similar roles do

Zippia Careers
Farming, Fishing, and Forestry Industry
Food Inspector
Food Inspector vs Agricultural Commodities Inspector

Updated January 8, 2025

Browse farming, fishing, and forestry jobs