Agriculture Specialist 1-3

State of Louisiana; Baton Rouge (LA); On-site; USD 40,000 - 43,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Employee Assistance Program (EAP)

Job summary

Louisiana Department of Agriculture and Forestry is seeking a dedicated Agriculture Specialist to perform regulatory inspections for egg and poultry products, obtain USDA licensure, and ensure compliance with state and federal rules. The role includes field work, plant inspections, and coordination of emergency programs as part of the incident management team.

Qualified candidates will have three years of related experience or a bachelor’s degree in forestry or related science.

Qualifications

• Three years of experience in administrative services, inspection/enforcement of agricultural laws, or related duties.
• Bachelor’s degree in forestry, agricultural, biological, chemical, environmental, health, or physical science, or IT, mathematics, or business fields.

Responsibilities

• Perform regulatory inspections to ensure proper egg and egg product grades.
• Obtain and maintain USDA license and perform grading of eggs, poultry and products.
• Ensure eggs and products have proper grade via retail stores, warehouses, or facilities.
• Take enforcement actions to correct regulatory non-compliances.
• Coordinate and complete required field inspections promptly.
• Inspect and grade eggs, poultry in plant environments as relief grader.

Skills

Policies & procedures

Learning

Judgment

Professionalism

Critical thinking

Education

Bachelor’s degree in forestry or related field

Job description

Job #AHFS-50626697-9.4.26-TW

This position is located within the office of Animal Health & Food Safety, Poultry & Egg Division, in East Baton Rouge Parish.

This position will serve East Baton Rouge and surrounding parishes.

The Department of Agriculture and Forestry is looking for dedicated professionals and make a difference.

The Poultry & Egg Programs are responsible for voluntary grading service on poultry, eggs and egg products, resident grading at USDA approved poultry and egg plants, fee grading for poultry and eggs performed by federally licensed state graders; state grading and certification of poultry and eggs for state institutions and parish schools, inspecting retail outlets while enforcing the Louisiana Egg Marketing Act. In addition, the employee will perform Fruit & Vegetable inspections for state institutions as needed. Supervision for this position is received from an Agriculture Specialist Program Manager.

Selected Core Competencies:

Following Policies and Procedures:

The ability to follow, reinforce, adapt, or develop policies and procedures to maintain compliance with federal and state legal requirements, State Civil Service rules, and organizational policies.

Learning Actively:

The ability to pursue learning, seek feedback, and integrate new knowledge to improve personal and professional performance.

Making Accurate Judgments:

The ability to assess options, weigh risks, and make sound decisions using available information and logical reasoning.

Selected Preferred Competencies:

Displaying Professionalism:

The ability to uphold workplace standards through consistent conduct, responsible communication, and consideration for others.

Thinking Critically:

The ability to analyze information objectively, identify connections across sources, and form logical, well-supported conclusions.

LDAF cares about the well-being of its employees! We offer a fully employer-funded Employee Assistance Program (EAP), providing valuable support and resources to help you and your household members thrive at work and at home. The EAP is also free for all members of your household.

Three years of experience in one or a combination of the following:

• Administrative services
• Inspecting or enforcing compliance with agricultural laws, rules, or regulations
• Inspection and testing of weighing and measuring devices

OR

A bachelor’s degree in forestry, an agricultural, biological, chemical, environmental, health, or physical science, or an information technology, mathematics, or business field.

The official job specifications for this role, as defined by the State Civil Service, can be found here.

Job Duties:

• Performs regulatory inspections to ensure proper grade of egg and egg products in their assigned work area as required by the Louisiana Egg Marketing Act.

• Obtains and maintains a USDA license and performs grading of eggs, poultry and poultry products.

• Ensures that egg and egg products have the proper grade assigned by checking retail stores, distribution warehouses, or any other facility that handles egg and egg products.

• Takes appropriate enforcement actions to ensure regulatory non‑compliances are corrected.

• Coordinate and ensure that required field work inspections are completed in a timely and efficient manner.

• Inspects and grades eggs, poultry or poultry products in a plant environment as a relief grader to ensure that all USDA regulations are followed and the product is in compliance.

• Ensures that all Federal and State rules and regulations governing eggs, poultry & poultry products are followed.

• Issues USDA certificates as needed, keeps USDA files up to date as required and works with appropriate USDA supervision as required by Federal/State cooperative agreement.

• Responsible for grading and certification of eggs or poultry for state institutions and parish schools.

• Ensures that poultry and egg contracts adhere to the specifications requested by state institutions or applicants.

• Assist with coordination of Emergency Programs including planning, exercising, responding and recovery from all hazards affecting agriculture and the citizens of Louisiana as a member of LDAF Incident Management Team as assigned by Incident Commander.

• Performs other duties as may be assigned.

Functional Requirements:

Moderate light lifting, 30 pounds with occasional lifting of up to 50 pounds

Reaching above shoulders

Climbing stairs

Frequently reaching above shoulder height

Occasional bending or kneeling

Drive a vehicle to perform inspections

Lifting items such as tools, computer, scanner, luggage or other items used to travel and perform duties/attend class throughout the state

Climbing on and off transport and tractor

Environmental Factors:

Working indoors and occasionally outdoors

Occasional excessive heat and humidity

Slippery and uneven walking surfaces

Occasionally working in moderately cold temperatures for short periods of time

Working in cold temperatures for short periods of time

Position‑Specific Details:

Appointment Type:

Full-time- t this position may be filled by probation or by promotion of a classified employee of the Louisiana Department of Agriculture and Forestry serving with permanent status. Applicants who are not permanent employees of the Louisiana Department of Agriculture and Forestry will be required to serve a probationary period up to 24 months.

Career Progression

: This position may be filled as an Agriculture Specialist 1, 2, or 3, depending on the level of experience of the selected applicant(s).

Compensation

*Below positions have a Special Entrance Rate in the Career Progression Group*

Agriculture Specialist 1 has an SER of $1,538.47 Bi-weekly.

Agriculture Specialist 2 has an SER of $1,646.40 Bi-weekly.

The Louisiana Department of Agriculture and Forestry is an Equal Opportunity Employer and State as a Model Employer (SAME) to promote diversity and inclusion in the workplace.

Tiffany Waddell - HR Analyst

Louisiana Department of Agriculture & Forestry

5825 Florida Blvd., Suite 1001

Baton Rouge, LA 70806

[e-mail]

The Louisiana Department of Agriculture and Forestry strictly prohibits workplace harassment and discrimination on the basis of race, color, gender, sex, pregnancy, age, disability, religion, national origin, military service, sickle cell trait, protected genetic information or other non‑merit factor. LDAF also strictly prohibits employment decisions based upon or influenced by such factors.