Occupational Employment Statistics

DETAILED OCCUPATION DATA

35-2021 Food Preparation Workers

Occupational Description:
Perform a variety of food preparation duties other than cooking, such as preparing cold foods and shellfish, slicing meat, and brewing coffee or tea.

Occupational Employment Statistics(OES) Wage Data
First Quarter 2026

Geography	Employment	Emp SE*	Percentiles
Geography	Employment	Emp SE*	Mean	10th	25th	Median	75th	90th
Minnesota	24,620	2,413	$17.55/hr	$14.36/hr	$15.06/hr	$17.18/hr	$18.86/hr	$22.57/hr

Leading Industries for Food Preparation Workers

Industry	OES Employment (Statewide)	OES Median Wage (Statewide)
Manufacturing	170	$15.21/hr
Trade, Transportation and Utilities	7,550	$17.63/hr
Professional and Business Services	210	$19.12/hr
Education and Health Services	5,570	$18.86/hr
Leisure and Hospitality	10,910	$15.17/hr
Other Services	20	$18.29/hr
Public Administration	180	$17.07/hr

Other Regional Data for Food Preparation Workers

Geography	Employment	Median Wage	Projections % Change 2022-2032
Grand Forks ND-MN MSA	270	$17.57/hr	N/A
Mankato-North Mankato MN MSA	390	$16.49/hr	N/A
Northeast Balance of State	460	$16.15/hr	N/A
Fargo ND-MN MSA	550	$18.04/hr	N/A
La Crosse WI-MN MSA	660	$17.21/hr	N/A
Rochester MN MSA	790	$17.48/hr	N/A
Southwest Balance of State	840	$16.10/hr	N/A
St Cloud MN MSA	890	$16.53/hr	N/A
Duluth MN-WI MSA	1,050	$16.76/hr	N/A
Northeast Minnesota	1,260	$16.22/hr	-5.9%
Southwest Minnesota	1,430	$16.63/hr	-9.1%
Southeast Balance of State	1,450	$17.04/hr	N/A
Northwest Balance of State	1,750	$17.07/hr	N/A
Southeast Minnesota	1,920	$17.18/hr	-7.0%
Northwest Minnesota	2,170	$17.08/hr	-8.6%
Central Minnesota	2,830	$16.90/hr	-8.1%
Seven County Mpls-St Paul, MN	14,890	$17.31/hr	-5.4%
Minneapolis-St Paul-Bloomington MN-WI MSA	16,810	$17.30/hr	N/A
Minnesota	24,620	$17.18/hr	-6.3%

Related Occupations

Occupations	Employment	Median Wage	Projections % Change 2022-2032
Dining Room and Cafeteria Attendants and Bartender Helpers	7,220	$14.40/hr	8.0%
Fast Food and Counter Workers	58,970	$15.46/hr	4.2%
Cooks, Restaurant	26,080	$19.02/hr	12.1%

Task for Food Preparation Workers

Add cutlery, napkins, food, and other items to trays on assembly lines in hospitals, cafeterias, airline kitchens, and similar establishments.
Operate cash register, handle money, and give correct change.
Receive and store food supplies, equipment, and utensils in refrigerators, cupboards, and other storage areas.
Use manual or electric appliances to clean, peel, slice, and trim foods.
Keep records of the quantities of food used.
Weigh or measure ingredients.
Inform supervisors when equipment is not working properly and when food and supplies are getting low, and order needed items.
Load dishes, glasses, and tableware into dishwashing machines.
Scrape leftovers from dishes into garbage containers.
Remove trash and clean kitchen garbage containers.