R&D Lab Operator - Bakery & Confectionery

About Ferrero

Ferrero began its journey in the small town of Alba in Piedmont, Italy, in 1946. Today, it is one of the world’s largest sweet‑packaged food companies, with many iconic brands sold worldwide.

Lab Operator – Technical Laboratory Operator within Ferrero North America R&D. Supports product innovation and development in pastry and confectionery, translating culinary expertise into lab‑scale formulation, testing, and optimization of new and existing products.

• Execute lab‑scale product development using advanced pastry and baking techniques, ensuring accuracy in scaling, formulation, and reproducibility.
• Translate culinary concepts and pastry expertise into structured formulations, converting between weights and percentages.
• Prepare and refine prototypes for bakery and confectionery products to achieve desired texture, flavor, and appearance.
• Collaborate with R&D and cross‑functional teams to develop, renovate, and improve products across quality, sensorial, and shelf‑life dimensions.
• Evaluate raw materials and semi‑finished products to enhance product performance, structure, and cost efficiency.
• Conduct analytical testing (e.g., texture, moisture, color) and interpret results to guide formulation decisions.
• Prepare samples for tastings, sensory panels, and internal evaluations, ensuring high‑quality presentation and consistency.
• Perform competitive product benchmarking and support product reverse engineering activities.
• Maintain laboratory operations including ingredient inventory, equipment upkeep, sanitation, and adherence to food safety standards and GMPs.
• Document formulations, processes, and results accurately within a regulated R&D environment.

• Professionally trained pastry chef (formal culinary or pastry certification strongly preferred) with practical experience in bakery and/or confectionery production.
• Demonstrated experience translating culinary or pastry techniques into product development or structured formulations (R&D or pilot plant experience is a strong plus).
• Strong understanding of bakery and confectionery ingredients, functionality, and processing techniques.
• Experience working in a regulated food environment, including documentation practices and adherence to food safety and GMP standards.
• Proficiency in formulation calculations (e.g., scaling recipes, converting weights and percentages) and working knowledge of tools such as Microsoft Excel.
• Ability to combine hands‑on execution with analytical thinking to troubleshoot and optimize product performance.

Base salary range: $69,280 – $92,374 annually. Additional compensation determined by experience and qualifications. Benefits include health insurance, retirement plans, paid time off, and other standard benefits.

Ferrero is an equal‑opportunity employer and complies with all applicable human rights laws. Ferrero will recruit, hire, train, and promote all persons without regard to race, creed, color, sex (including pregnancy, gender, sexual orientation, and gender identity), religion, national origin, age, disability, or other protected characteristics. Ferrero will accommodate the needs of applicants with disabilities throughout all stages of the selection process.