Scientist ​/ Associate Principal Scientist - Biotransformation

At Tate & Lyle, our purpose is simple:
Transforming Lives Through the Science of Food. We partner with leading food and beverage brands around the world to create healthier, tastier and more sustainable products that consumers love. Backed by more than 165 years of innovation, our people are passionate about making a positive difference for customers, communities and the planet. If you're looking to be part of a purpose‑led organization where your work can have a real impact, read on to learn more about this opportunity and how you can help shape the future of food.

The Scientist / Associate Principal Scientist - Biotransformation contributes advanced technical expertise to support R&D projects, focusing on utilizing comprehensive knowledge to drive scientific innovation and problem‑solving within the team. This role supports new product development and process improvement initiatives to ensure high standards of research quality and compliance.

• Conduct research to support new product development and process improvement projects, applying comprehensive scientific knowledge to solve challenges within the team.
• Provide technical guidance to junior team members, sharing insights and promoting best practices in R&D.
• Assist project teams in designing experiments and methodologies, ensuring adherence to scientific and regulatory standards.
• Collaborate with cross‑functional teams in Innovation & R&D to apply research findings to product development and process improvements, supporting team‑wide priorities and targets.
• Stay informed of industry trends and emerging technologies to assess their potential impact on the team's R&D activities, making suggestions to management about new opportunities.
• Support intellectual property development within the team by contributing to patents, publications and technical presentations.
• Participate in technical discussions and project reviews with management, offering insights and recommendations to support team objectives.

Bachelor’s degree or equivalent experience; may be working towards a professional qualification. Comprehensive knowledge of Product / Process Research & Development procedures, with full knowledge of methodologies, processes, practices, and atypical issues within product and process development in the food and beverage industry. Largely able to operate independently, though may seek guidance on atypical or complex product- or process‑related issues. Able to coach juniors on technical and operational matters in a specialism.

Accountable for own targets and reviewing work of juniors. Frequently conducts detailed analysis and investigation to identify innovative solutions for Product / Process R&D problems or needs, determine best options or suggest improvements to existing methods. This role involves initiating communication with cross‑functional teams to address and resolve shared issues, collaborate on processes, and interpret or clarify technical information to enhance understanding.

Ph.D. in Microbiology, Biotechnology, Bioinformatics, Biochemical Engineering, Molecular Biology, or a related discipline preferred, with significant experience in the food and beverage, biotechnology, or pharmaceutical industry.

• Recent Ph.D. plus 0-2 yrs of industry experience for Scientist level.
• Ph.D. plus 3-5+ yrs of industry experience (non‑academic) to qualify for Associate Principal level.

As a member of the Genetics and Fermentation team in Ingredient R&D, this role requires subject matter expertise and hands‑on experience in strain discovery, microbial strain engineering, classical mutagenesis, microbial physiology, CRISPR, and other genome editing tools. Strong, hands‑on experience in DNA/RNA isolation, PCR/qPCR, plasmid construction, vector design, cloning (restriction enzyme, Gibson Assembly, Golden Gate), transformation, conjugation, electroporation, sequencing analysis, recombinant protein expression, and gene expression analysis.

Experience in host strain development, mutant library construction, phenotype screening, genotype-phenotype correlation, enzyme…