A professional who applies scientific and engineering principles in research, development, production technology, quality control, packaging, processing, and utilization of foods. Responsibilities include:

• Conducts basic research, and new product research and development of foods.
• Develops new and improved methods and systems for food processing, production, quality control, packaging, and distribution.
• Studies methods to improve quality of foods, such as flavor, color, texture, nutritional value, convenience, or physical, chemical, and microbiological composition of foods.
• Develops food standards, safety and sanitary regulations, and waste management and water supply specifications.
• Tests new products in test kitchen and develops specific processing methods in laboratory pilot plant, and confers with process engineers, flavor experts, and packaging and marketing specialists to resolve problems.
• May specialize in one phase of food technology, such as product development, quality control, or production inspection, technical writing, teaching, or consulting.
• May specialize in particular branch of food technology, such as cereal grains, meat and poultry, fats and oils, seafood, animal foods, beverages, dairy products, flavors, sugars and starches, stabilizers, preservatives, colors, and nutritional additives, and be identified according to branch of food technology.