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What do Agricultural Inspectors do?
Inspect agricultural commodities, processing equipment, and facilities, and fish and logging operations, to ensure compliance with regulations and laws governing health, quality, and safety.
- Inspect agricultural commodities or related operations, as well as fish or logging operations, for compliance with laws and regulations governing health, quality, and safety.
- Inspect or test horticultural products or livestock to detect harmful diseases, chemical residues, or infestations and to determine the quality of products or animals.
- Verify that transportation and handling procedures meet regulatory requirements.
- Collect samples from animals, plants, or products and route them to laboratories for microbiological assessment, ingredient verification, or other testing.
- Interpret and enforce government acts and regulations and explain required standards to agricultural workers.
- Write reports of findings and recommendations and advise farmers, growers, or processors of corrective action to be taken.
- Inspect the cleanliness and practices of establishment employees.
- Monitor the operations and sanitary conditions of slaughtering or meat processing plants.
- Inspect food products and processing procedures to determine whether products are safe to eat.
- Take emergency actions, such as closing production facilities, if product safety is compromised.
- Monitor the grading performed by company employees to verify conformance to standards.
- Label and seal graded products and issue official grading certificates.
- Inspect livestock to determine effectiveness of medication or feeding programs.
- Set standards for the production of meat or poultry products or for food ingredients, additives, or compounds used to prepare or package products.
- Direct or monitor the quarantine and treatment or destruction of plants or plant products.
- Inquire about pesticides or chemicals to which animals may have been exposed.
- Set labeling standards and approve labels for meat or poultry products.
- Examine, weigh, and measure commodities, such as poultry, eggs, meat, or seafood to certify qualities, grades, and weights.
- Compare product recipes with government-approved formulas or recipes to determine acceptability.
- Review and monitor foreign product inspection systems in countries of origin to ensure equivalence to the U.S. system.
- Provide consultative services in areas such as equipment or product evaluation, plant construction or layout, or food safety systems.
- Advise farmers or growers of development programs or new equipment or techniques to aid in quality production.
- Testify in legal proceedings.
Related Jobs (Agricultural Inspectors)
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Necessary Skills
- Monitoring
- Quality Control Analysis
- Reading Comprehension
- Speaking
- Critical Thinking
- Writing
- Active Listening