Manager – Research & Development (Confectionery Chef)

Product Innovation Chocolate Bakery Commercial Food Manufacturing

Location: Orlando, Florida

Company: Behr's Chocolates / International Cacao

Create the Next Great Confection.

Behr's Chocolates is an established premium confectionery manufacturer serving nationally recognized theme parks, retailers, and private label customers. We are seeking an experienced Manager – Research & Development (Confectionery Chef) to lead our product innovation efforts and help create the next generation of premium chocolates, candies, cookies, pastries, baked goods, caramels, and seasonal confections.

This is an exciting opportunity for a creative culinary professional who enjoys taking products from concept through successful commercial production. The ideal candidate is equally comfortable working in the kitchen, on the production floor, and in corporate customer meetings presenting new product concepts.

If you are passionate about innovation and enjoy seeing your creations come to life on a commercial scale, we'd love to meet you.

Position Summary

The Manager – Research & Development will lead all aspects of new product development from concept through commercialization.

This position is responsible for developing innovative products, creating commercial manufacturing formulas, supporting product costing, assisting with nutritional analysis and FDA labeling, preparing technical documentation, training production employees, and ensuring successful product launches.

The successful candidate will work closely with Executive Management, Sales, Production, Purchasing, and Quality Assurance while serving as a technical resource for customers during the product development process.

Essential ResponsibilitiesProduct Development

• Develop innovative chocolates, candies, caramels, fudge, cookies, pastries, baked goods, fillings, snacks, and seasonal confections.
• Improve existing recipes for flavor, texture, appearance, shelf life, manufacturability, and cost efficiency.
• Research new ingredients, technologies, packaging, and market trends.
• Develop products from concept through commercial production.
• Scale recipes from kitchen batches to full commercial manufacturing.

Recipe Development & Technical Documentation

• Develop standardized recipes and commercial formulations.
• Prepare production formulas, batch sheets, and processing instructions.
• Develop product specifications and manufacturing procedures.
• Maintain recipe revisions and technical documentation.
• Develop Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs) for new products.

Product Costing & Regulatory Support

• Assist management with ingredient, packaging, and labor costing during product development.
• Work with Purchasing and Management to identify cost-saving opportunities while maintaining product quality.
• Assist with ingredient statements and FDA labeling requirements.
• Experience using nutritional analysis software to create Nutrition Facts Panels and ingredient statements is highly preferred.
• Assist with allergen declarations and regulatory compliance.

Commercialization & Product Launch

• Lead pilot production runs.
• Troubleshoot manufacturing challenges.
• Optimize recipes for commercial production.
• Assist Production and Quality Assurance during new product launches.
• Ensure products can be manufactured consistently while maintaining quality standards.

Production Training

• Train production employees on new recipes and manufacturing procedures.
• Develop training materials and visual work instructions.
• Train employees on proper equipment operation related to new products.
• Support continuous improvement initiatives throughout production.

Customer Collaboration

• Meet with customers to understand project objectives.
• Develop products that meet customer expectations.
• Present product concepts, samples, and prototypes to customers.
• Professionally represent the Company during customer meetings and product presentations.
• Confidently communicate with corporate-level customers and decision-makers.
• Work closely with Sales and Executive Management throughout the product development process.

QualificationsRequired

• Bachelor's degree in Food Science, Culinary Arts, Baking & Pastry, or a related field preferred, OR an equivalent combination of education and extensive commercial confectionery experience.
• Minimum 3 years of commercial product development experience in confectionery, chocolate, pastry, bakery, or food manufacturing.
• Strong experience developing products for commercial manufacturing.
• Excellent knowledge of:
• Chocolate
• Caramel
• Sugar confectionery
• Cookies
• Pastries
• Baked goods
• Fillings
• Ingredient functionality
• Shelf-life development
• Experience developing standardized commercial recipes.
• Strong organizational and project management skills.
• Ability to manage multiple development projects simultaneously.
• Fluent in English and Spanish (written and spoken) is required.
• Comfortable presenting products and leading meetings with customers and corporate-level clients.
• Excellent written and verbal communication skills.
• Strong attention to detail.

Preferred

• Experience in commercial food manufacturing.
• Knowledge of FDA food labeling regulations.
• Experience using nutritional analysis software to generate Nutrition Facts Panels and ingredient statements.
• Experience supporting product costing and profitability analysis.
• Knowledge of GMPs, HACCP, SQF, and Food Safety Management Systems.
• Experience developing SOPs and manufacturing documentation.
• Experience training production employees.
• Experience working with private-label or retail customers.

Physical Requirements

Candidates must be able to:

• Stand and walk for prolonged periods.
• Frequently perform repetitive hand and arm movements.
• Lift up to 55 pounds.
• Bend, kneel, reach, and occasionally climb ladders.
• Work safely in both kitchen and manufacturing environments.
• Wear required PPE and comply with GMP and Food Safety requirements.

Why Join Behr's Chocolates?

At Behr's Chocolates, you'll have the opportunity to create products enjoyed by customers at some of the country's most recognized retailers, specialty stores, and theme parks. You'll work directly with executive leadership and have the freedom to innovate while helping shape the future of our product portfolio.

This is more than a chef position—it's an opportunity to lead innovation, mentor production teams, collaborate with major customers, and leave your mark on products enjoyed by thousands of consumers every day.

If you're an innovative, hands-on product developer who thrives in a collaborative manufacturing environment and is excited about bringing great ideas to life, we'd love to hear from you.

Pay: From $65,000.00 per year

Benefits:

• Paid time off

Work Location: In person

Salary : $65,000