Development Technologist

About Avara Foods

Avara Foods is one of the UK’s leading food businesses, supplying chicken and turkey to the country’s major supermarkets and well‑known restaurants.

We own and manage our entire supply chain, from farms to factory and all the way to the customer door, which means we have careers that cover a whole range of functions. We have major processing sites across England and Wales, and an agricultural network of over 350 farms, spanning from North Yorkshire to the South Coast and Wales.

As a New Product Development Technologist you will support the NPD Development Product Manager in developing and delivering NPD initiatives for your business unit area. You will report directly to the New Product Development Manager and work closely with cross‑functional teams such as Technical, Operations, Commercial, Planning and Procurement teams to identify requirements and plan work schedules for product delivery. The role is predominantly office based but you will be required to enter the factory environment and may be exposed to a refrigerated, noisy environment.

You’ll work Monday to Friday 08:30‑17:00. Travel to suppliers, customers and Avara manufacturing sites will be required on a weekly basis.

• Category and market knowledge – continually research markets and technologies to develop new product concepts for Retail & Food Service.
• Organise internal and external benchmarking sessions.
• Manage & develop product concepts with suppliers against customer requirements and briefs.
• Prepare product costings to ensure the launch of profitable products.
• Update our internal NPD system for all potential and new launches.
• Support customer presentations ensuring all required documentation has been completed.
• Manage NPD meetings with cross‑functional teams to ensure all actions are completed before launch, enabling a successful launch.
• Ensure all development activity is completed in line with NPD procedures and processes and that information is correctly and accurately recorded.
• Work in conjunction with technical and operations to organise and execute production trials and manage subsequent shelf‑life assessments, organoleptic testing, cooking instruction verification, and nutritional sample analysis.
• Occasional weekend working may be required to complete organoleptic assessments.
• Use production trials to update information to validate product costing.
• Liaise with the site‑based Operations and Technical teams to plan the product launch.
• Manage launches to ensure the product complies with the specification and meets the agreed quality parameters.

• Experience in developing and launching new products with retail and/or food service customers.
• Experience of working within product development in an FMCG environment.
• Managing critical paths and coordinating internal departments to ensure successful product launches.
• Knowledge of the functional characteristics of food ingredients.
• Full understanding of the product development process from concept through to launch, with previous experience of adherence to Retailers NPD systems.
• Able to work under own initiative.
• Computer literate.
• Methodical approach and able to ascertain clear requirements from stakeholders.
• Highly accurate with excellent attention to detail.
• Full UK driving licence.

• A recognised qualification in Food Sciences or a related subject area.
• Experience of working within product development in a Meat/Poultry environment.
• Knowledge of food labelling and ingredient regulatory requirements.

As a Development Technologist you will enjoy a secure, supportive and progressive working environment, where your contribution and achievements will be recognised and rewarded.

• Competitive salary.
• 31 days holiday.
• 6% pension.
• Private medical insurance.
• Life insurance.
• Various lifestyle benefits, including wellbeing resources.

We are committed to being an equal opportunities employer.