Application Scientist - Food

About Planetary

Planetary is building the future of food through large‑scale fermentation. Based in Switzerland, we produce high‑quality, sustainable ingredients that help food companies create better products without compromise on taste, texture, or nutrition.

At the heart of our portfolio is Libre® mycoprotein: a minimally processed, whole‑food ingredient grown through natural fermentation. It delivers complete protein (PDCAAS 0.997) comparable to top animal sources, with added fibre and a naturally meat‑like texture—unlocking new possibilities across meat alternatives, hybrid products, and entirely new food categories. All this below the price of chicken meat.

We partner with food brands, manufacturers, and food service leaders to bring innovative, delicious products to market, from concept to launch. We recently closed a €23 M Series A led by Oetker Ventures and Royal Cosun, giving us the fuel to scale Libre® into more kitchens, factories, and supermarket shelves worldwide.

We are recruiting a full‑time Application Scientist to work closely with the sales and R&D team to develop our mycelium‑based meat and dairy alternative protein business. The role requires experience in recipe development for consumer‑appealing products. Reporting into the Commercial Director and the CPO, the candidate will collaborate closely with sales, business development, marketing and the fermentation R&D team and will focus on the following activities to enable Planetary's strategic objective of building and servicing a global network of industrial‑scale bioprocessing facilities:

• Develop and sample a range of concepts in meat‑style and dairy‑style products based on fungal biomass/mycoprotein and precision‑fermented proteins such as egg albumin, casein, and whey protein.
• Build experience in emerging categories such as hybrid meat products, protein fortification and nutraceutical applications around gut‑microbiome / GLP1 context.
• Provide guidance and advise the fermentation team on effects of changes to the fermentation process on physical, chemical, and microbial attributes of mycoprotein or the finished product.
• Manage the company facilities and infrastructure of the food development kitchen and the analytical laboratory.
• Present raw material and food product concepts to prospective clients in Switzerland and abroad, when required.
• Ensure mycoprotein functionality meets customer requirements in final products.
• Assist in troubleshooting application challenges in collaboration with customers.
• Contribute to the rollout of new applications in partnership with sales and product teams.
• Collaborate with the commercial team in preparing product information, general process flow charts and pricing material.

• Affiliation with the food sector; food enthusiasts are welcomed.
• Bachelor’s degree in Food Science or a related field.
• 2–5 years of experience in the meat or vegan/vegetarian industry.
• Hands‑on experience with application processing and pilot‑plant equipment, ideally.
• Proven ability to develop new applications, improve existing formulations, and ensure product consistency.
• Basic understanding of chemical and microbiological aspects of consumer products, focusing on taste, quality and safety.
• Experience with ingredient functionality and its impact on texture, taste and product stability.
• Ability to communicate in English, German and/or French is a strong plus.

• Application – Submit your CV and a short motivation.
• Intro call – 30‑minute call with our recruiter to get to know each other and answer your questions.
• Interview with the team – A deeper conversation with the hiring manager focused on your food science background and hands‑on experience.
• Final interview – Meeting with the Leadership Team.

We aim to move fast and keep you informed at every step. The total process typically takes 3–4 weeks.

Planetary is an equal‑opportunity employer actively recruiting for diversity. Through hiring, we aim to close the gender gap, create opinion plurality, fight age discrimination, foster cultural diversity and promote freedom of self‑expression.

• Contract type:
  Full‑time
• Start date:
  
  01 May 2026
• Location:
  
  Gland
• Education level:
  Bachelor’s Degree
• Experience:
  
  > 2 years