Cooks, Institution and Cafeteria
Prepare and cook large quantities of food for institutions, such as schools, hospitals, or cafeterias.
441,050 people do this job in the US. $37,450 a year.
of the working time. Estimate.
- 20%
- 0%
- 80%
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, 14%. Today's estimate: 16%.
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 . 17 tasks from .
| Task | Kind | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Cook foodstuffs according to menus, special dietary or nutritional restrictions, or numbers of portions to be served.Done daily by most who do it. | 18% | 1.7 h38 min to 3.3 h | Stays with people | |
| Clean and inspect galley equipment, kitchen appliances, and work areas to ensure cleanliness and functional operation.Done daily by most who do it. | 9% | 38 min17 min to 1.3 h | Stays with people | |
| Plan menus that are varied, nutritionally balanced, and appetizing, taking advantage of foods in season and local availability.Done daily by most who do it. | 9% | 2.5 h50 min to 5 h | 55%Half by now | |
| Apportion and serve food to facility residents, employees, or patrons.Done daily by most who do it. | 9% | 50 min25 min to 1.7 h | Stays with people | |
| Wash pots, pans, dishes, utensils, or other cooking equipment.Done daily by most who do it. | 8% | 38 min17 min to 1.3 h | Stays with people | |
| Clean, cut, and cook meat, fish, or poultry.Done daily by most who do it. | 7% | 50 min25 min to 1.7 h | Stays with people | |
| Train new employees.Done more than yearly by most who do it. | 6% | 2.5 h50 min to 6.7 h | Stays with people | |
| Direct activities of one or more workers who assist in preparing and serving meals.Done daily by most who do it. | 6% | 38 min17 min to 1.3 h | Stays with people | |
| Bake breads, rolls, or other pastries.Done daily by most who do it. | 5% | 1.7 h38 min to 2.5 h | Stays with people | |
| Rotate and store food supplies.Done daily by most who do it. | 4% | 33 min17 min to 50 min | Stays with people | |
| Monitor and record food temperatures to ensure food safety.Done several times a day by most who do it. | 4% | 13 min8 min to 25 min | Stays with people | |
| Monitor menus and spending to ensure that meals are prepared economically.Done daily by most who do it. | 3% | 50 min25 min to 1.7 h | 99%Half by now |
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.
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).