Senior Food Scientist

SUMMARY

The Senior Food Scientist plays a critical role in the Product Development Team and is responsible for product development efforts for all of Nature’s Bakery. This includes new products, line extensions, cost savings projects, qualifying alternate suppliers, and quality improvements. The Senior Food Scientist is responsible for ensuring that objectives, product design and timelines are met. This role responds resourcefully to new demands and challenges throughout the product & commercialization process and implements best practices.

To achieve results, the Senior Food Scientist must be collaborative and demonstrate strong interpersonal skills and the ability to influence decisions within the cross functional team (Marketing, Operations, Engineering, Quality Assurance, Process Development and Procurement) and externally with partners (suppliers). They need to have an organization-first mindset, making decisions with suppliers or internal partners to deliver projects on time and within budget for the benefit of Nature’s Bakery.

The Senior Food Scientist is expected to possess and demonstrate a solid understanding of food science, business, operations, and the commercialization processes. Their approach should include practical knowledge of existing products/new technologies and the identification and innovative creation of new and unique products. The role provides technical specifications and support to assure smooth rollouts of new products and processes during plant startups and trials. This includes the provision of comprehensive process documentation to enable smooth commercialization and training of plant personnel. They must support an environment that fosters innovation and calculated risk taking.

The Senior Food Scientist will report to our Director of Product Development and will be part of the Central Product Development team, serving two bakeries as well as any expanded enterprise footprint. The role is based in our flagship St. Louis metro area bakery where the R&D lab is located as well and will require periodic domestic and international travel.

ESSENTIAL DUTIES AND RESPONSIBILITIES include the following. Other duties may be assigned.

• Develop new products from ideation to commercialization, including creating formulations, conducting sensory evaluations, and overseeing plant trials
• Apply advanced technical expertise to identify, scope, develop, validate, and commercialize new ingredient technologies that drive the innovation pipeline to advance business growth
• Perform ingredient evaluations (benchtop testing, sensory analysis, comparative analysis, etc.) and submit case studies on all findings
• Test and define procedures and processing parameters
• Document technical information and prepare reports for trials.
• Stay up-to-date with industry trends and technologies to drive innovation and enhance product offerings
• Proactively collaborate with external suppliers to solve challenges and source alternative ingredients
• Design formulas to meet customer specifications and requirements
• Utilize nutrition database for product development, recipe analysis, nutrition analysis and government compliant labeling
• Research and evaluate new ingredients, processing, food science applications that may aid in product development
• Mentor junior team members and provide technical guidance and support
• Working closely with the R&D Manager and Engineering team to scale-up new products from the lab/benchtop to full production

QUALIFICATIONS

To perform this job successfully, an individual must be able to perform each essential duty satisfactorily. The requirements listed below are representative of the knowledge, skill, and/or ability required. Reasonable accommodations may be made to enable individuals with disabilities to perform the essential functions.

• BS Food Science, or related field
• Minimum of 6 years related experience
• Prior bakery experience/related baking process experience or food manufacturing preferred
• Strong knowledge of food ingredients, processing, and sensory evaluation.
• Understanding of how ingredients used in the baking process interact with each other and the knowledge to adjust formulation and baking systems to achieve optimum product output and quality
• Prior benchtop prototyping and recipe development experience
• Develop and advise on product formulations and scale ups, that leverages expertise in food chemistry and food ingredient functionality
• Ability to manage multiple work streams while delivering to target dates
• Travel required up to 30% of the time dependent on project maturity/workload
• Candidate must have excellent interpersonal skills, working with others in a team setting, communicating directly with stakeholders and vendor contacts
• A team player who works well in an environment where sharing information and open communication is critical to the overall success of the organization.
• Proven skills in prioritization, influencing and project management, and working on multiple projects at the same time
• Strong analytical skills, problem solving skills, and detail orientation required
• CPG experience desired
• Knowledge of food safety and regulatory requirements.

COMPUTER SKILLS:

• Proficient in Microsoft Word, Excel, PowerPoint, and Teams. Understanding of Genesis for recipe creation and nutritional database.

EDUCATION AND/OR EXPERIENCE:

• BS Food Science, or related field

SUPERVISORY RESPONSIBILITIES:

• This role has no supervisory responsibilities.

What we offer you

Our team members' physical and mental health is important to a thriving workplace. That’s why we offer the following benefits to full-time employees:

• Medical, dental, and vision insurance offered for eligible employees
• 401(k) plan with a company match that vest on day 1 of eligibility
• Paid vacation
• Paid time off
• Holiday pay (11 days)
• Paid short-term disability
• Paid life insurance
• Banfield Pet Insurance Discounts
• Wellness Benefits and Discounts
• Employee Assistance Program