Careers in the food and beverage industries are diverse and range from the highly technical (e.g. chemical engineers and food scientists) to those using business and social skills (e.g. marketing associates and operations/logistics managers). Staff in these fields work to move raw food and products through the processing, packaging, and transportation to customers. Fresh produce, wine, spirits, juices and canned and perishable processed foods move from farm to table, sometimes across short distances where customers buy directly from producers and sometimes traveling thousands of miles. There are careers at every step of the way. Explore your options while keeping your own unique interests, skills, and values in mind.
Some possible job titles include:
- Food Scientist
- Quality Assurance Specialist
- Product Developer
- Researcher
- Marketing Associate
- Food Processor
- Viticulturist
- Enologist
- Operations/Logistics Specialist
- Winemaker
- Post-Harvest Analyst
- Food Safety Inspector
- Mechanical Engineer
- Chemical Engineer
- Brewmaster
- Nutritionist
- Fermentation Microbiologist
- Food Broker
- Sensory Evaluator
Areas of Interest
The Occupational Outlook Handbook provides detailed information about career options in agricultural and food sciences and in marketing and management. Be sure to check out the “Similar Occupations” tab on each page to explore related fields.
Related fields
If you are interested in careers relating to foods and beverages, you might also look at careers in: agriculture, business and management, engineering and computer science, health and medicine, government, international and nonprofit.
Major Information
To find out where fellow Aggies interned and found employment by major, use the ICC data pages.
Campus Organizations
Student organizations are a great place to connect with others exploring similar career interests. Use the keyword search in the Center for Student Involvement’s OrgSync database to find student organizations that relate to your interests.
Master’s and Ph.D. students, and postdoctoral scholars can participate in and take on leadership roles in campus organizations such as the Graduate Student Association, Chancellor’s Graduate and Professional Student Advisory Board and the Postdoctoral Scholar’s Association.
Professional Associations
Joining professional associations related to the industry you are interested in provides access to professionals in the field, and networking opportunities which can lead to potential jobs and internships. Many national associations have state and local chapters you can join. Involvement in associations can also provide you insider updates on industry trends and best practices. One of the best ways to identify relevant associations is to search for them online, but we have provided some resources below to get you started. Please note that this is not an exhaustive list.
- Blue Sky Produce Careers (produce careers)
- Careers in Food (food and beverage manufacturing careers listing)
- Craft Beverage Jobs (wine, beer, spirits, coffee)
- Food On Line (food safety, food processing, automation, packaging and the supply chain)
- Good Food Jobs (gastro-job search tool)
- Institute of Food Technologists (food science careers)
- Produce Marketing Association (post harvest/marketing careers)
- Wine Communications Group (wine industry)
Visit the ICC and Meet with an Advisor
For further guidance narrowing down your career interests, you can schedule an advising appointment. Our advising page has a list of all ICC advisors or you can review the list of undergraduate advisors below:
