Environmental Science and Protection Technicians, Including Health vs Food Science Technicians: $55K vs $52K Median Pay

Environmental Science and Protection Technicians, Including Health vs Food Science Technicians: what changes?

Consider Environmental Science and Protection Technicians, Including Health if you want to perform laboratory and field tests to monitor the environment and investigate sources of pollution, including those that affect health, under the direction of an environmental scientist, engineer, or other…. Consider Food Science Technicians if you would rather work with food scientists or technologists to perform standardized qualitative and quantitative tests to determine physical or chemical properties of food or beverage products. Both list associate's degree; compare training and prior experience separately.

Try this next: Compare three local entry-level postings for Environmental Science and Protection Technicians, Including Health and Food Science Technicians. List the duties, credentials, prior experience, and paid training each employer actually asks for. Try a supervised class or sample project from each field before choosing a program.

BLS 2025 wages and 2025–2035 projections. National medians are not starting offers. Occupation size is not a count of vacancies. View the BLS data.

Compare the practical differences

Environmental Science and Protection Technicians, Including Health

National median pay (2025): $55,090
Route into the job: Associate's degree
Prior related experience: No prior related occupation is typically required; employer requirements vary.
Training and licensing: BLS does not list a separate on-the-job training requirement. Employers may still provide orientation and role-specific training.
Work to investigate: Collect samples of gases, soils, water, industrial wastewater, or asbestos products to conduct tests on pollutant levels or identify sources of pollution.
Annual openings (2025–2035): 5,300

Know before you choose

Deadline pressure is a recurring condition rather than an occasional emergency.

See the full Environmental Science and Protection Technicians, Including Health brief

Food Science Technicians

National median pay (2025): $52,130
Route into the job: Associate's degree; More than one month and up to 12 months of on-the-job training, in addition to any qualifying education or licensing
Prior related experience: No prior related occupation is typically required; employer requirements vary.
Training and licensing: More than one month and up to 12 months of on-the-job training, in addition to any qualifying education or licensing.
Work to investigate: Taste or smell foods or beverages to ensure that flavors meet specifications or to select samples with specific characteristics.
Annual openings (2025–2035): 3,000

Know before you choose

This is a small national occupation (20,800 jobs in 2025), so location and employer concentration can matter more than the national median suggests.

See the full Food Science Technicians brief

How the national numbers differ

Environmental Science and Protection Technicians, Including Health has the edge on annual openings

Environmental Science and Protection Technicians, Including Health is at 5,300 annual openings, compared with 3,000 annual openings for Food Science Technicians.

Environmental Science and Protection Technicians, Including Health has the edge on projected growth

Environmental Science and Protection Technicians, Including Health is at 6.9% projected growth, compared with 4.8% projected growth for Food Science Technicians.

Typical preparation differs.

Environmental Science and Protection Technicians, Including Health: Associate's degree Food Science Technicians: Associate's degree; More than one month and up to 12 months of on-the-job training, in addition to any qualifying education or licensing Preparation categories do not establish admission difficulty, calendar time, tuition, time without earnings, or licensing difficulty.

Environmental Science and Protection Technicians, Including Health has the edge on median pay

Environmental Science and Protection Technicians, Including Health is at $55,090, compared with $52,130 for Food Science Technicians.

53/ 100

Environmental Science and Protection Technicians, Including Health

47.8/ 100

Food Science Technicians

Each available metric is ranked from 0 to 100 against the careers on ChooseField. The weighted average uses this profile: pay 30%, growth 25%, openings 30%, preparation level 15%. Missing values are not scored as zero; their weights are redistributed across available metrics. Occupation size has zero weight: employment is not accessible vacancies. Preparation categories do not measure admission difficulty or years without earnings. The score summarizes national measures; local opportunities and personal fit still need separate consideration.

Detailed evidence

Environmental Science and Protection Technicians, Including Health vs Food Science Technicians

Dimension	Environmental Science and Protection Technicians, Including Health	Food Science Technicians
Median pay (2025)	$55,090	$52,130
Pay percentile	39.8 percentile	37.1 percentile
Projected growth (2025–2035)	6.9%	4.8%
Annual openings (2025–2035)	5,300	3,000
2025 employment	36,400	20,800
How you qualify	Associate's degree	Associate's degree; More than one month and up to 12 months of on-the-job training, in addition to any qualifying education or licensing
O*NET preparation group	Job Zone 4	Job Zone 3
Related work experience	No prior related occupation is typically required; employer requirements vary.	No prior related occupation is typically required; employer requirements vary.
On-the-job training	BLS does not list a separate on-the-job training requirement. Employers may still provide orientation and role-specific training.	More than one month and up to 12 months of on-the-job training, in addition to any qualifying education or licensing.

The table reports national benchmarks and reviewed work descriptions. It does not rate personal suitability, job security, or physical safety.

Read Environmental Science and Protection Technicians, Including Health brief Read Food Science Technicians brief

Environmental Science and Protection Technicians, Including Health vs Food Science Technicians: what changes?

The facts most likely to affect your decision

Environmental Science and Protection Technicians, Including Health

Food Science Technicians

How the national numbers differ

Environmental Science and Protection Technicians, Including Health has the edge on annual openings

Environmental Science and Protection Technicians, Including Health has the edge on projected growth

Typical preparation differs.

Environmental Science and Protection Technicians, Including Health has the edge on median pay

Environmental Science and Protection Technicians, Including Health vs Food Science Technicians

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