Occupation

Graders and Sorters, Agricultural Products

Human Advantage 51%

Moderate human-AI collaboration

AI Automation Risk Moderate Risk
4.6 / 10

Some tasks in this role may be augmented by AI, but human oversight and interpersonal skills remain important.

Grade, sort, or classify unprocessed food and other agricultural products by size, weight, color, or condition.

Also Known As: Agricultural Establishment Grader Inspector, Agricultural Produce Sorter, Agriculture Laborer, Apple Sorter, Apple Turner, Asparagus Buncher, Banana Expert, Banana Grader +116 more

Video

Core Tasks

  1. Place products in containers according to grade and mark grades on containers.
  2. Weigh products or estimate their weight, visually or by feel.
  3. Discard inferior or defective products or foreign matter, and place acceptable products in containers for further processing.
  4. Grade and sort products according to factors such as color, species, length, width, appearance, feel, smell, and quality to ensure correct processing and usage.

Supplemental Tasks (1)

  1. Record grade or identification numbers on tags or on shipping, receiving, or sales sheets.

Education & Training

Job Zone 1 Job Zone One: Little or No Preparation Needed
Education: Some of these occupations may require a high school diploma or GED certificate.
Experience: Little or no previous work-related skill, knowledge, or experience is needed for these occupations. For example, a person can become a waiter or waitress even if he/she has never worked before.
On-the-Job Training: Employees in these occupations need anywhere from a few days to a few months of training. Usually, an experienced worker could show you how to do the job.

Education Level Distribution

Percentage of workers in this occupation with each education level.

Less than a High School Diploma
64%
High School Diploma - or the equivalent (for example, GED)
27%
Associate's Degree (or other 2-year degree)
5%
Post-Secondary Certificate - awarded for training completed after high school (for example, in agriculture or natural resources, computer services, personal or culinary services, engineering technologies, healthcare, construction trades, mechanic and repair technologies, or precision production)
5%

Technology & Tools

Hot Technologies

  • Microsoft Access
  • Microsoft Active Server Pages ASP
  • Microsoft Excel
  • Microsoft Office software
  • Microsoft Outlook
  • Microsoft PowerPoint
  • Microsoft Word

Software (8)

  • Word processing software

Tools & Equipment (41)

  • 12-inch aluminum Kemper calipers
  • 6-inch plastic calipers
  • Apple corers
  • Belt conveyors
  • Binocular light compound microscopes
  • Cherry sizers
  • Color sorters
  • Crate openers
  • Cross belt sorters
  • Deformation testers
  • Diameter sorting machines
  • Digital calipers
  • Digital cameras
  • Digital refractometers
  • Digital surface thermometers
  • Diverter samplers
  • Drag conveyors
  • Electronic penetrometers
  • Firmness testers
  • Garlic presses
  • General purpose sizers
  • Grape sizers
  • Indented cylinder graders
  • Kick sorters
  • Meat probes
  • Onion sizers
  • Optical reflectometers
  • Overhead diverters
  • Overhead weighing systems
  • Paddle sorters
  • Peanut triers
  • Potato sizers
  • Probes
  • Rotary sifters
  • Seed graders
  • Shape sorting machines
  • Specific gravity separators
  • Tomato sizers
  • Utility knives
  • Vibrating screens
  • Weight sorting machines

Where This Career Leads

Career progression organized by specialty track and experience level.

Agricultural Technology & Automation Agriculture

Zone 1
Graders and Sorters, Agricultural Products You are here
Zone 2
Farm Labor Contractors 76% match
Zone 3
Farm Equipment Mechanics and Service Technicians 77% match
Zone 4
Agricultural Engineers 75% match

Resume Builder

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Real Talk

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