Headline risk
7%
Low RiskFood cooking machine operators and tenders
United States AI Work Index tracks this occupation on the shared structural baseline and then layers on local demand resilience, wages, and confidence.
Why This Score
Share of job tasks that overlap with current AI capabilities
Median annual wage
Projected employment change over 10 years
Typical preparation needed for this occupation
Occupation profile
Operate or tend cooking equipment, such as steam cooking vats, deep fry cookers, pressure cookers, kettles, and boilers, to prepare food products.
Task evidence
100% weighted task match · 0% effective coverage
Scores combine AI task overlap, human advantages, and local demand. How it works
United States Now
Median Wage
USD 40,550
Employment 2024
29.7K
Projected Change (2024–34)
0.6%
Openings (2024–34)
4.4K
Wage distribution
Demand outlook
Overall employment of food processing equipment workers is projected to grow 5 percent from 2024 to 2034, faster than the average for all occupations.
Role Profile
Tasks
- 1. Clean, wash, and sterilize equipment and cooking area, using water hoses, cleaning or sterilizing solutions, or rinses. AI use: 0%
- 2. Read work orders, recipes, or formulas to determine cooking times and temperatures, and ingredient specifications. AI use: 0%
- 3. Record production and test data, such as processing steps, temperature and steam readings, cooking time, batches processed, and test results. AI use: 0%
- 4. Measure or weigh ingredients, using scales or measuring containers. AI use: 0%
- 5. Observe gauges, dials, and product characteristics, and adjust controls to maintain appropriate temperature, pressure, and flow of ingredients. AI use: 0%
- 6. Tend or operate and control equipment, such as kettles, cookers, vats and tanks, and boilers, to cook ingredients or prepare products for further processing. AI use: 0%
Technologies
Requirements
Work context
Worker profile
Median age 40.4 · 242K employed
Under 25: 16% · 25–54: 64% · 55+: 21%
Related
No direct US role match is available yet for this occupation.
Source coverage
11/11 source families · O*NET 30.2 / OEWS 2024 / ORS 2025 / OOH 2025-08-28 / Projections 2024-34 / CPS 2025 / Anthropic task penetration
Mapping quality
crosswalk_exact · employment series present
Narrative & sources
Food processing equipment workers operate machinery that mixes, cooks, or processes ingredients for manufacturing food products.
Most food processing equipment workers are employed in manufacturing facilities. Because of production schedules, shift work is common and may include early mornings, evenings, or nights. Most food processing equipment workers are employed full time.
Education requirements vary for food processing equipment workers. Some typically need no formal education credential; however, others typically need a high school diploma or equivalent.
The median annual wage for food processing equipment workers was $40,050 in May 2024.
Overall employment of food processing equipment workers is projected to grow 5 percent from 2024 to 2034, faster than the average for all occupations.
Published limitations
This page shows the local country layer, not realised individual job outcomes. The global structural baseline is shared across countries; only the local demand and wage layer changes here.
Built from O*NET occupation descriptions, task statements, technology skills, work context, Job Zones, Anthropic task penetration, BLS OEWS wages, BLS projection tables, BLS ORS requirements, BLS OOH narrative content, BLS skills data, and BLS CPS occupation age tables.