POSITION: Senior Food Technologist
REPORT TO: Food Technical Director
LINE MANAGEMENT: Initially None
LOCATION: Hybrid with remote working possible and occasional office visits
TRAVEL: Occasional travel required to retail customers in UK or potentially to overseas manufacturing sites
This is an exciting opportunity for a dynamic team player with a proven track record in the food industry who is enthusiastic and committed to join an entrepreneurial company with an impressive history of success. We have offices in the UK, Hong Kong and South Africa and work with a diverse portfolio of retailers supplying bespoke products within various food & non-food categories.
The successful candidate will have overall technical responsibility to manage quality, food safety, and compliance of products within specific categories. You will be involved in creating and maintaining a specification data base, ensuring regulatory compliance and the delivery of all technical aspects of new product development.
The successful candidate will consult with food technologists at both retailers and our global manufacturing sites.
KEY ROLES AND RESPONSIBILITIES
· Developing and maintaining product specifications
· Ensuring regulatory compliance of all products, packaging, and raw materials with due diligence in place
· New product development delivery of technical priorities as per a stage gate process including factory trials, shelf-life studies, analyses of processes and specifications to ensure compatibility with factory processed to produce a consistent safe and quality product.
· Investigating customer complaints and working closely with our manufacturing partners to implement appropriate corrective and preventative actions.
· Building customer trust by ensuring food safety, quality, and consistency of products by thorough regular testing and monitoring.
· Managing factory audits and audit schedules, reporting on any potential food safety or quality issues.
· Monitoring GMP practices in factories and reporting on nonconformances.
· Working effectively across a multi-disciplinary team by sharing knowledge and information across all stakeholders.
EXPERIENCE/SKILLS
· Min of 5 years’ experience in quality management, product development, legislation, manufacturing with a proven track record of relevant industry experience/knowledge across a wide range of products
· Retail supplier experience and/or brand development experience
· Meticulous attention to detail and the ability to analyse data, ID potential problems and develop solutions.
· Strong working knowledge of food safety, food legislation, quality management systems, HACCP, BRC, Supply chain
· Preferred – bachelor’s/btech degree in food technology, food science or equivalent.
· Preferred – experience in customer facing product development and technology role.
· Effective communication and collaboration skills with the ability to collaborate effectively with diverse teams and customers across multiple disciplines and functions.
· The ability to successfully lead, manage and deliver projects related to npd or process/systems improvements.
· Ability to work autonomously in a demanding environment.
· Ability to disseminate information accurately and effectively.