Food scientist vs nutritionist

The differences between food scientists and nutritionists can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. While it typically takes 2-4 years to become a food scientist, becoming a nutritionist takes usually requires 1-2 years. Additionally, a food scientist has an average salary of $74,345, which is higher than the $49,877 average annual salary of a nutritionist.

The top three skills for a food scientist include product development, project management and food safety. The most important skills for a nutritionist are patients, public health, and wic program.

Food scientist vs nutritionist overview

	Food Scientist	Nutritionist
Yearly salary	$74,345	$49,877
Hourly rate	$35.74	$23.98
Growth rate	8%	7%
Number of jobs	93,145	698
Job satisfaction	-	-
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 74%	Bachelor's Degree, 65%
Average age	40	42
Years of experience	4	2

What does a food scientist do?

A food scientists' job is primarily to improve food in terms of quality and packaging and create new food products. This job may include ensuring products comply with health and safety standards as well as developing excellent quality food processing, storage, and transportation procedures. They will collaborate with project groups to make new products starting from conceptualization to commercialization. Moreover, they work on the release of potential brands and improve nutritional quality, especially the flavor and texture of food. Also, they assist the company in leading product improvements and innovations.

What does a nutritionist do?

A nutritionist is a health professional who helps patients choose the right things to eat and advise them on the health effects of certain foods. By being experts in food and nutrition, nutritionists assess a patient's dietary habits and create plan menus for them. They usually work closely with patients who have medical issues such as diabetes or those undergoing chemotherapy. Nutritionists are also required to speak to students or employees about the importance of good nutrition and preventing health problems through proper foods.

Food scientist vs nutritionist salary

Food scientists and nutritionists have different pay scales, as shown below.

	Food Scientist	Nutritionist
Average salary	$74,345	$49,877
Salary range	Between $45,000 And $121,000	Between $30,000 And $80,000
Highest paying City	Napa, CA	Santa Rosa, CA
Highest paying state	Ohio	Alaska
Best paying company	LexisNexis Reed Tech	Cargill
Best paying industry	Education	Finance

Differences between food scientist and nutritionist education

There are a few differences between a food scientist and a nutritionist in terms of educational background:

	Food Scientist	Nutritionist
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 74%	Bachelor's Degree, 65%
Most common major	Food Science	Dietetics
Most common college	Cornell University	University of Maryland - College Park

Food scientist vs nutritionist demographics

Here are the differences between food scientists' and nutritionists' demographics:

	Food Scientist	Nutritionist
Average age	40	42
Gender ratio	Male, 38.4% Female, 61.6%	Male, 15.8% Female, 84.2%
Race ratio	Black or African American, 4.0% Unknown, 2.8% Hispanic or Latino, 8.0% Asian, 11.9% White, 73.1% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.2%	Black or African American, 9.5% Unknown, 3.6% Hispanic or Latino, 10.9% Asian, 9.9% White, 65.1% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.9%
LGBT Percentage	19%	8%

Differences between food scientist and nutritionist duties and responsibilities

Food scientist example responsibilities.

Achieve accurate, quick QC sample analysis to ensure product integrity.
Lead a collaboration with another biotechnology company to design ELISAs for the purpose of evaluating novel reagents.
Manage sample inventory via in-house laboratory information management system (LIMS) and implement additional systems for sample and chemical organization.
Maintain all QA lab equipment used for preprocess and finish food testing.
Perform HPLC and GC method development and validations to support ANDA filings.
Work on extrusion line; co-developed granola pieces for cereal application and agglomerate bars.

Nutritionist example responsibilities.

Lead weekly nutritional education workshops on diabetes management, in addition to providing individual counseling.
Inspire patients to proactively manage their diabetes, to include administering insulin and taking prescribe medications.
Follow up in the out-patient GI clinic for tube feeding regimens, assessing growth and food allergies.
Establish clients via social media; maintain Facebook page.
Develop training table menus for all NCAA scholarship athletes and attend training table.
Provide complete instruction and advice to patients with diet-relate problems like diabetics, hypertension.

Food scientist vs nutritionist skills

Common food scientist skills

Product Development, 9%
Project Management, 8%
Food Safety, 8%
Pilot Plant, 7%
FDA, 4%
Technical Support, 4%

Common nutritionist skills

Patients, 21%
Public Health, 8%
WIC Program, 7%
RD, 6%
Food Service, 6%
Medical Nutrition Therapy, 4%

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Food Scientist vs Nutritionist

Updated January 8, 2025

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