Career Explorer Business and finance
Grows with AI
Buyers and purchasing agents
Purchase farm products either for further processing or resale. Includes tree farm contractors, grain brokers and market operators, grain buyers, and tobacco buyers. May negotiate contracts.
In the middle of the pack: more resilient than 41% of the 831 careers we score. AI exposure is high (the Bureau of Labor Statistics rates it very high), and US jobs are projected to change by +6.0% by 2035, faster than average. The work leans on emotional intelligence and ethical judgement.
AI can help with many of the tasks, and demand is still growing. Being fluent with AI is the edge here.
- Median pay (2025)
- $77,710
- Job growth to 2035
- +6.0%
- Openings a year
- 47,200
- People doing it (2025)
- 516,000
- Usual route in
- Bachelor's degree, then moderate on-the-job training
Where people already use AI for this work
- Purchase goods or services
- Execute financial transactions
- Obtain information about goods or services
From Microsoft Research, Working with AI (2025).
Work AI rarely helps with
- Communicate with others about business strategies
- Negotiate contracts or agreements
- Monitor resources or inventories
What the work looks like
- Purchase, for further processing or for resale, farm products, such as milk, grains, or Christmas trees.
- Negotiate contracts with farmers for the production or purchase of farm products.
- Maintain records of business transactions and product inventories, reporting data to companies or government agencies as necessary.
- Review orders to determine product types and quantities required to meet demand.
- Arrange for transportation or storage of purchased products.
From O*NET 31.0, US Department of Labor.
What the Bureau of Labor Statistics expects
- More of these jobs, as supply chains become more complex and additional service contracts are needed.
- Fewer of these jobs, as new technology allows workers to be more efficient. In addition, the continued use of cooperative purchasing agreements in the public sector will allow localities to use fewer resources and staff to complete routine procurement functions.
Careers using similar strengths, with a stronger outlook
- Agents and business managers of artists, performers, and athletesGrows with AI, Index 46, +9.7%
- LogisticiansGrows with AI, Index 60, +17.6%
- Financial managersGrows with AI, Index 43, +9.7%
- Natural sciences managersGrows with AI, Index 55, +8.2%
Also known as: Buyer, Grain Buyer, Grain Merchandiser, Purchasing Agent, Cattle Buyer, Grain Market Advisor, Grain Marketing Advisor, Grain Origination Specialist.
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Sources: US Bureau of Labor Statistics Employment Projections 2025 to 2035; O*NET 31.0; Microsoft Research (2025); Anthropic Economic Index (2026); Eloundou and colleagues (Science, 2024); Felten, Raj and Seamans (2023). How we score. Updated 12 October 2026.