Graders and Sorters, Agricultural Products
Agriculture, Food and Natural ResourcesO*NET 45-2041.00United States
Grade, sort, or classify unprocessed food and other agricultural products by size, weight, color, or condition.
- Median annual earnings
- $34,987
- Projected change
- −0%
- Typical education
- High school diploma or less
- Employment
- 43.8K jobs
50th percentile, United States
2025 to 2035
90.5% of the workforce
Growing to 43.79K by 2035
Explore this career by location
Compare nationwide estimates with state or county job-market data.
Showing United States
Loading available locations…
Build the skills
ASU learning related to this career
These courses and certificates are connected through catalog career relationships and Lightcast skill tags.
Loading related ASU learning
The work
What graders and sorters, agricultural products do
Tasks reported for this occupation, ordered by how often they come up in the role.
- Place products in containers according to grade and mark grades on containers.
- Weigh products or estimate their weight, visually or by feel.
- Grade and sort products according to factors such as color, species, length, width, appearance, feel, smell, and quality to ensure correct processing and usage.
- Discard inferior or defective products or foreign matter, and place acceptable products in containers for further processing.
Pay and outlook
What the job pays and where it is heading
Annual earnings range
Reported earnings by percentile, United States
- 10th percentile
- $19,700
- 25th percentile
- $27,940
- 50th percentile
- $34,987
- 75th percentile
- $38,114
- 90th percentile
- $47,333
The gold marker shows the median. Half earn more than $34,987 and half earn less.
Employment outlook
2025 to 2035 projection
−0%projected to decline
202543,799 jobs
2035 projected43,789 jobs
10 fewer positions over the decade, before replacement hiring.
Preparation
Education levels
What people currently working in the career hold. These are not entry requirements.
- High school diploma or less
- 90.5%
- Associate degree
- 4.9%
- Certificate
- 4.7%
Skills
Skills employers ask for
Technical skills appearing most often in job postings for this occupation.
How the work gets done
Core competencies
Broad capabilities associated with strong performance in this occupation.
- Monitoring
- Monitoring/Assessing performance of yourself, other individuals, or organizations to make improvements or take corrective action.
- Active Listening
- Giving full attention to what other people are saying, taking time to understand the points being made, asking questions as appropriate, and not interrupting at inappropriate times.
- Speaking
- Talking to others to convey information effectively.
- Coordination
- Adjusting actions in relation to others' actions.
- Critical Thinking
- Using logic and reasoning to identify the strengths and weaknesses of alternative solutions, conclusions, or approaches to problems.
- Time Management
- Managing one's own time and the time of others.
- Judgment and Decision Making
- Considering the relative costs and benefits of potential actions to choose the most appropriate one.
- Reading Comprehension
- Understanding written sentences and paragraphs in work-related documents.
- Writing
- Communicating effectively in writing as appropriate for the needs of the audience.
- Social Perceptiveness
- Being aware of others' reactions and understanding why they react as they do.
- Complex Problem Solving
- Identifying complex problems and reviewing related information to develop and evaluate options and implement solutions.
- Active Learning
- Understanding the implications of new information for both current and future problem-solving and decision-making.
- Persuasion
- Persuading others to change their minds or behavior.
- Systems Analysis
- Determining how a system should work and how changes in conditions, operations, and the environment will affect outcomes.
- Service Orientation
- Actively looking for ways to help people.
- Quality Control Analysis
- Conducting tests and inspections of products, services, or processes to evaluate quality or performance.
- Negotiation
- Bringing others together and trying to reconcile differences.
- Operations Monitoring
- Watching gauges, dials, or other indicators to make sure a machine is working properly.
- Systems Evaluation
- Identifying measures or indicators of system performance and the actions needed to improve or correct performance, relative to the goals of the system.
- Learning Strategies
- Selecting and using training/instructional methods and procedures appropriate for the situation when learning or teaching new things.
In the market
Job titles and employers
Recent job postings in United StatesCommon job titles
- 01Grain Inspectors81 postings
- 02Agricultural Commodity Graders45 postings
- 03Field Inspectors10 postings
- 04Fresh Managers8 postings
- 05Engineer Inspectors5 postings
- 06Agricultural Specialists4 postings
- 07Graders4 postings
- 08Quality Assurance Inspectors4 postings
- 09Samplers4 postings
- 10Grape Harvesters3 postings
- 11Sample Technicians3 postings
- 12Sorters3 postings
- 13Commodity Traders2 postings
- 14Drivers/Gaugers2 postings
- 15Inspectors/Instructors2 postings
- 16Marshals2 postings
- 17Noon Aides2 postings
- 18Plant Inspectors2 postings
- 19Quality Specialists2 postings
- 20Sanitarians2 postings
Top employers
- 01Eurofins40 postings
- 02Agricultural Marketing Service34 postings
- 03State of Missouri12 postings
- 04SGS10 postings
- 05Tyson Foods7 postings
- 06American Foods Group6 postings
- 07McCain Foods6 postings
- 08State of Washington4 postings
- 09State of Montana3 postings
- 10Trinchero Family Estates3 postings
- 11Camin Cargo Control2 postings
- 12Hastings Grain Inspection2 postings
- 13Kankakee Grain Inspection2 postings
- 14Neil Jones Food Company2 postings
- 15Ofi2 postings
- 16Riceland Foods2 postings
- 17United States Department of Agriculture2 postings
- 18Aberdeen Grain Inspection1 postings
- 19American Staffing1 postings
- 20Amsted Automotive1 postings
Keep looking