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Manufacturing & Production

Food Batchmakers

Set up and operate equipment that mixes or blends ingredients used in the manufacturing of food products. Includes candy makers and cheese makers.

What it pays
Food Batchmakers earn a median of $20.33/hr — about $42,500 a year. The lowest-paid 10% earn $15.38/hr; the top 10% earn $28.34/hr. (Annual figures are approximate: hourly × 2,080.)

What you'd actually do

How you get there

Typical entry-level education: High school diploma. Overall preparation: some preparation (Job Zone 2 of 5).

The feel of the work

The work is mostly indoors; much of the day is spent working solo. (Compared against the other 818 careers in the guide.)

Working for yourself

About 0.6% of food batchmakers are self-employed.

Who it tends to fit

This work tends to fit people who are hands-on and organized and detail-focused.

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Related careers

Quick questions

How much does a food batchmaker make?
The median pay is $20.33 per hour — roughly $42,500 a year, with the real range running from about $15.38/hr (10th percentile) to $28.34/hr (90th percentile). Source: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.
Do you need a degree to be a food batchmaker?
The typical entry-level education is: High school diploma. Overall preparation level: some preparation (Job Zone 2 of 5).
What does a food batchmaker actually do all day?
Record production and test data for each food product batch, such as the ingredients used, temperature, test results, and time cycle. Clean and sterilize vats and factory processing areas. Set up, operate, and tend equipment that cooks, mixes, blends, or processes ingredients in the manufacturing of food products, according to formulas or recipes.
Wages: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, OEWS. Tasks & interests: O*NET. Career pathways shown in the app are draft archetypes — verify before relying on them. Trailhead is a free career guide for students — honest numbers, no hype.

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