R&D Food Scientist

R&D Food Scientist / R&D Technologist

This role focuses on developing and improving food and nutritional products by formulating new recipes, conducting sensory and laboratory testing, and ensuring all products meet regulatory and quality standards. You will work closely with flavor chemists, vendors, customers, and internal teams to recreate requested flavors, build and maintain formulas in Excel, and support both technical and commercial aspects of product development, including a sales and cost-planning component.

• Conduct organoleptic (sensory) testing to evaluate flavors and determine the profiles needed to create or recreate food and nutritional products, such as non-dairy creamers and other flavored items.
• Create, maintain, and adjust product formulas using Excel, ensuring accuracy of ingredients, quantities, and cost data.
• Source ingredients and packaging components to fulfill formula requirements, including obtaining quotations, securing the best pricing, and coordinating with vendors.
• Develop new formulas for customers and internal products, including formulation design, cost calculation, ingredient sourcing coordination, application testing, sample preparation, and new product scale-up coordination.
• Quote new products for customers by preparing product costings based on raw materials and manufacturing costs, ensuring profitability and identifying cost savings for existing products.
• Research regulatory requirements for all ingredients, including trademarked and specialty ingredients, to ensure compliance with FDA, SQF, FSMA, USDA Organic, GMP, Kosher, Halal, and other relevant regulations.
• Prepare Nutrition Facts and Supplement Facts panels in compliance with FDA regulations based on final product formulations.
• Review and approve labels to ensure they meet all applicable FDA and regulatory requirements before releasing them for use in production.
• Review all incoming labels and related documentation to verify accuracy and regulatory compliance.
• Mix and prepare samples for testing, tasting, and formula changes, and ensure samples are properly documented and tracked.
• Test food and nutritional products to determine physical and chemical properties, ensuring products are fit for distribution and meet quality and regulatory standards.
• Track and maintain detailed records of formula experimentation, ingredient performance, and formulation changes, and prepare reports to summarize findings and results.
• Review technical data, product specifications, and vendor documentation to ensure all materials meet quality and regulatory requirements.
• Communicate with vendors to obtain proper documentation, source new ingredients and packaging components, and resolve technical or supply-related issues.
• Assist with customer complaint investigations or product issues by reviewing formulations, processes, and documentation and contributing to corrective actions.
• Participate in packaging innovation and technology projects, collaborating with other departments to improve product presentation, functionality, and cost efficiency.
• Perform cost planning by collecting and evaluating data to estimate the costs, resources, and labor needed to produce products, and monitor forecast plans.
• Conduct market research on estimated costs and prepare bids and cost proposals for new and existing products.
• Discuss and propose ways to improve food and nutritional product recipes, incorporating new technologies, ingredients, and market trends.
• Stay current with food and nutritional product trends by reading professional publications, studying industry developments, and participating in professional training and organizations.
• Communicate directly with customers to understand product specifications, requests, and expectations, and translate these requirements into practical formulations and solutions.
• Collaborate with other internal departments to ensure product accuracy, alignment with customer requirements, and smooth handoff from R&D to production and other functions.
• Work with shipping and receiving teams to develop processes for price costing and shipping programs for new and existing customers, including shipping documents,…