Agricultural Inspectors
Inspect agricultural commodities, processing equipment, and facilities, and fish and logging operations, to ensure compliance with regulations and laws governing health, quality, and safety.
14,410 people do this job in the US. $49,940 a year.
of the working time. Estimate.
- 42%
- 2%
- 56%
Measured, from Anthropic's usage data (2025). Counts help on part of a task.
On the chosen pace and reliability. Estimate.
Share of the working time within reach, now to 2030
What each choice means: , , , , . Every pace starts from .
At this date and pace, models finish tasks up to 4.4 h long four times in five.
How far this has come
With GPT-4, measured in March 2023, 0% of this job's working time was within reach at . With Claude 3.7 Sonnet, measured in February 2025, 0%. With Claude Mythos Preview (early), measured in April 2026, 9%. Today's estimate: 12%.
A backcast: today's task data with the best model METR had measured by each date. It shows how fast the models have moved, not what anyone forecast at the time.
The tasks
Sorted by . 22 tasks from .
| Task | Kind | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Monitor the operations and sanitary conditions of slaughtering or meat processing plants.Done hourly or more by most who do it. | 12% | 3.3 h1.7 h to 6.7 h | Stays with people | |
| Set standards for the production of meat or poultry products or for food ingredients, additives, or compounds used to prepare or package products.Done daily by most who do it. | 12% | 2.5 work days6.7 h to 1.7 work weeks | 0%Half by Jun 2028 | |
| Review and monitor foreign product inspection systems in countries of origin to ensure equivalence to the U.S. system.Done daily by most who do it. | 12% | 4.2 work days6.7 h to 3.3 work weeks | 0%Half by Apr 2029 | |
| Inspect food products and processing procedures to determine whether products are safe to eat.Done daily by most who do it. | 10% | 2.5 h50 min to 6.7 h | Stays with people | |
| Inspect agricultural commodities or related operations, as well as fish or logging operations, for compliance with laws and regulations governing health, quality, and safety.Done daily by most who do it. | 9% | 2.5 h50 min to 6.7 h | Stays with people | |
| Examine, weigh, and measure commodities, such as poultry, eggs, meat, or seafood to certify qualities, grades, and weights.Done daily by most who do it. | 6% | 1.7 h25 min to 3.3 h | Stays with people | |
| Take emergency actions, such as closing production facilities, if product safety is compromised.Done yearly or less by most who do it. | 5% | 2.5 h50 min to 6.7 h | 46%Half by Oct 2026 | |
| Provide consultative services in areas such as equipment or product evaluation, plant construction or layout, or food safety systems.Done daily by most who do it. | 4% | 3.3 h1.7 h to 6.7 h | 49%Half by now | |
| Verify that transportation and handling procedures meet regulatory requirements.Done daily by most who do it. | 4% | 1.7 h25 min to 2.5 h | Stays with people | |
| Monitor the grading performed by company employees to verify conformance to standards.Done daily by most who do it. | 3% | 1.7 h50 min to 3.3 h | Stays with people | |
| Inspect the cleanliness and practices of establishment employees.Done daily by most who do it. | 3% | 1.3 h25 min to 2.1 h | Stays with people | |
| Inspect or test horticultural products or livestock to detect harmful diseases, chemical residues, or infestations and to determine the quality of products or animals.Done daily by most who do it. | 3% | 2.5 h50 min to 5 h | Stays with people |
Within reach, per task: the share of the task's time whose instances are short enough for a model to finish at the chosen date, pace and reliability. Half by: the date half of that time comes within reach.
Jobs that share skills with this one
From O*NET's related occupations. Within reach now and by the end of 2028, long-run pace, four in five.
- Construction and Building Inspectors24% now, 48% by 2028
- Food Science Technicians25% now, 25% by 2028
- First-Line Supervisors of Farming, Fishing, and Forestry Workers16% now, 24% by 2028
- Aviation Inspectors17% now, 26% by 2028
- Agricultural Technicians3% now, 9% by 2028
- Occupational Health and Safety Technicians30% now, 60% by 2028
Where this job works
The industry groups that employ the most of it (BLS, May 2025).
Where the most of these jobs are
The metro areas with the most people in it (BLS, May 2025).