Production
Food Batchmakers
SOC 51-3092
Mix and cook food products in volume to a set recipe.
The job
Median pay
$42k
$36k to $50k typical range
Outlook, 2025 to 2035
Growing fast
+6.5% projected
Openings a year
23k
BLS projection
Typical education
No formal credential
Our model
AI displacement risk
Moderate
How much of this job AI may do instead of the person
Works with AI
12/100
AI alongside the person rather than instead of them
AI exposure
37th pct
More exposed than 37% of occupations · modeled estimate · 21st pct in Microsoft's data
Future-proof
47/100
Key skills
- Reading Comprehension
- Critical Thinking
- Active Listening
- Speaking
- Writing
- Monitoring
Pay and jobs by state
BLS OEWS May 2025, 51 states. Sorted by jobs; per 1,000 is jobs per thousand workers in the state; vs national compares that rate with the country's. A tilde marks a figure estimated from the parent occupation group where BLS publishes none.
| State | Jobs | Per 1,000 | vs national | Median pay |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Wisconsin | 18,040 | 6.1 | 5.5× | $48k |
| Texas | 13,250 | 0.9 | 0.8× | $38k |
| California | 12,560 | 0.7 | 0.6× | $42k |
| Illinois | 12,320 | 2.0 | 1.8× | $48k |
| New York | 8,460 | 0.9 | 0.8× | $38k |
| Pennsylvania | 8,160 | 1.3 | 1.2× | $40k |
| Minnesota | 7,660 | 2.6 | 2.3× | $43k |
| Ohio | 7,040 | 1.3 | 1.1× | $45k |
| Washington | 5,700 | 1.6 | 1.4× | $43k |
| Indiana | 5,570 | 1.7 | 1.6× | $40k |
All 51 states
| State | Jobs | Per 1,000 | vs national | Median pay |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Michigan | 5,130 | 1.2 | 1.0× | $40k |
| Massachusetts | 5,100 | 1.4 | 1.3× | $37k |
| Kentucky | 4,570 | 2.3 | 2.0× | $47k |
| Georgia | 4,290 | 0.9 | 0.8× | $46k |
| Iowa | 4,160 | 2.7 | 2.4× | $48k |
| Colorado | 3,880 | 1.4 | 1.2× | $45k |
| Florida | 3,670 | 0.4 | 0.3× | $36k |
| New Jersey | 3,640 | 0.8 | 0.8× | $38k |
| North Carolina | 3,450 | 0.7 | 0.6× | $37k |
| Oregon | 3,420 | 1.7 | 1.6× | $40k |
| Utah | 3,250 | 1.9 | 1.7× | $41k |
| Kansas | 3,230 | 2.2 | 2.0× | $43k |
| Tennessee | 2,920 | 0.9 | 0.8× | $43k |
| Virginia | 2,870 | 0.7 | 0.6× | $41k |
| Arizona | 2,300 | 0.7 | 0.6× | $41k |
| Missouri | 2,280 | 0.8 | 0.7× | $46k |
| Arkansas | 2,120 | 1.6 | 1.4× | $39k |
| Idaho | 1,700 | 2.0 | 1.8× | $50k |
| Connecticut | 1,460 | 0.9 | 0.8× | $39k |
| Maryland | 1,390 | 0.5 | 0.5× | $40k |
| Alabama | 1,280 | 0.6 | 0.5× | $37k |
| Nebraska | 1,270 | 1.2 | 1.1× | $41k |
| Vermont | 1,000 | 3.3 | 2.9× | $50k |
| Oklahoma | 930 | 0.5 | 0.5× | $36k |
| Nevada | 880 | 0.6 | 0.5× | $41k |
| South Carolina | 700 | 0.3 | 0.3× | $37k |
| Mississippi | 660 | 0.6 | 0.5× | $37k |
| South Dakota | 660 | 1.4 | 1.3× | $39k |
| Maine | 610 | 1.0 | 0.8× | $42k |
| Louisiana | 530 | 0.3 | 0.2× | $35k |
| New Mexico | 450 | 0.5 | 0.5× | $37k |
| Delaware | 380 | 0.8 | 0.7× | $37k |
| Hawaii | 360 | 0.6 | 0.5× | $37k |
| Rhode Island | 310 | 0.6 | 0.6× | $39k |
| North Dakota | 250 | 0.6 | 0.5× | $41k |
| New Hampshire | 190 | 0.3 | 0.3× | $37k |
| Montana | 170 | 0.3 | 0.3× | $40k |
| Washington DC | 102 | 0.1 | 0.1× | $54k~ |
| Alaska | 100 | 0.3 | 0.3× | $39k |
| Wyoming | 100 | 0.4 | 0.3× | $38k |
| West Virginia | 70 | 0.1 | 0.1× | $35k |
Top metro areas
- Chicago-Naperville-Elgin, IL-IN8,490 jobs · $48k median
- New York-Newark-Jersey City, NY-NJ6,860 jobs · $39k median
- Minneapolis-St. Paul-Bloomington, MN-WI4,490 jobs · $45k median
- Dallas-Fort Worth-Arlington, TX4,190 jobs · $39k median
- Los Angeles-Long Beach-Anaheim, CA4,130 jobs · $39k median
- Boston-Cambridge-Newton, MA-NH3,840 jobs · $37k median
- Houston-Pasadena-The Woodlands, TX3,210 jobs · $34k median
- Seattle-Tacoma-Bellevue, WA3,010 jobs · $42k median
Explore the rankings
Explore Food Batchmakers interactively →Pay and outlook from BLS (OEWS 2025, Employment Projections 2025-2035). Skills and work activities from O*NET 30.3. AI exposure and future-proof scores are modeled estimates. How these numbers are made.