Food Manufacturing — profit margin & cost structure (U.S.)

For the U.S. food manufacturing industry, IRS tax data shows an estimated -1.2% net margin on an owner-operator basis (national, sole proprietorships, tax year 2023). That figure — what a self-employed owner keeps per sales dollar before paying themselves — is the number this page exists to report; read the note below on how it's measured.

-1.2%net margin · owner-operator basis

National as of tax year 2023 Moderate confidence source ↗

Owner-operator basis (IRS SOI sole proprietorships, TY2023): net income less deficit ÷ business receipts, at NAICS 311 (Food Manufacturing). Sole-proprietor labor is not expensed, so this overstates corporate-style profit.

Cost structure

National, from IRS Statistics of Income (weighted sample). Where a component is not separately reported, it is shown as insufficient data — never estimated.

Component	Value
Cost of goods sold (% of receipts)	52.5%	National source ↗
Labor / officer compensation (% of receipts)	10.0%	National source ↗

Business size distribution (national)

Share of U.S. food manufacturing establishments by number of employees (Census County Business Patterns, 2023). 35% have fewer than 5 employees.

1–4 emp10,911 (35%)

5–9 emp5,358 (17%)

10–19 emp4,905 (16%)

20–49 emp4,341 (14%)

50–99 emp1,994 (6%)

100+ emp3,621 (12%)

Where this industry operates — all 51 states

Establishment counts, employment, and wages are available for free elsewhere too (e.g. Data USA). States ordered by number of establishments — pick one for local context:

Full cost-structure breakdown by business-size class and side-by-side industry comparison are available to subscribers. This page shows the current-year national headline plus the multi-year establishment trend.

Frequently asked

What is the average profit margin for food manufacturing businesses?

About -1.2% net margin on an owner-operator basis (national, IRS SOI sole proprietorships, tax year 2023). This counts the owner's own labor as profit, so it overstates corporate-style margin — see the note above.

How many food manufacturing businesses are there in the U.S.?

31,130 establishments with paid employees (Census County Business Patterns, 2023).

What is the average wage in the food manufacturing industry?

$1,181 per week (BLS QCEW 2024, private sector) — about $61,412/year.

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machine-readable JSON · NAICS 311