Lead Food Scientist I

Powerwell is a leading recruitment firm helping our clients discover top talent. We’re recruiting for a Lead Food Scientist I.

About Our Client:

Our client’s purpose is unlocking the potential of people, nature, and science to nourish the world. We consistently incorporate social and environmental impact into decision making given its importance to the success and profitability to our business. Our client is committed to creating a diverse and inclusive environment by embracing the wisdom and strengths that diversity brings.

Job Summary:

Our client’s Taste and Sensory Innovation team is the foundation and driving force of our client’s business through developing new food concepts and flavor formulations to gain new businesses. As a core team member, you will focus on the development and optimization of savory flavors, including reactions, top notes and EU compliant flavors to ensure that our client remains a leader in delivering high-quality and customized flavor solutions. The successful candidate support both product innovation and customer-specific projects.

Essential Job Responsibilities:

1. Utilize knowledge of flavor science to create complex and authentic savory flavors to meet customer and market demands.
2. Conduct research to explore and understand the functionalities of raw materials and processes that allow the creation of natural flavors for the US, EU and APAC.
3. Stay abreast of the latest trends and innovations in the flavor world, bringing concepts from ideation to commercialization.
4. Ensure compliance with regulatory requirements, customer specifications, and food safety standards during the development of flavor products.
5. Manage innovation projects by collaborating with cross functional teams such as Regulatory, Marketing, Sales, and the Business Unit Leadership teams, and to plan, prioritize, communicate, and execute multiple tasks efficiently.

Required Education/Experience:

• Must be a certified Flavorist or in process of obtaining.
• Master’s Degree in Food Science or Chemistry or related field.
• Experience in developing and enhancing top note profiles for savory applications.
• Experience in designing and optimizing reaction flavor systems, including ingredient interactions, thermal processing, and yield efficiency improvements.
• Experience in balancing top notes with reaction flavors to achieve complex, authentic flavor profiles.
• Ability to analyze and interpret data, communicate, and provide recommendations for research projects.
• Excellent communication skills
• Excellent project management skills with strong attention to detail.

Equipment Operation:

• Standard and Advanced laboratory equipment and instrumentation
• Lab scale grinding and extraction equipment

This job description is not intended to cover every detail or every aspect of the job identified. Other duties may and will be assigned based upon the workload and needs of the department. Our client is committed to providing safe food to its customers. This position requires completing annual food safety training. Food safety training is conducted through our client’s electronic training program and on-the-job training in each department.

Benefit Information:

• Benefits are effective Day 1 of employment.
• Blue Cross Blue Sheild of MI, Delta Dental & VSP Vision
• 5% direct contribution to 401(k) by our client.
• 128 hours of PTO/10 Federal Holidays/4 hours volunteer time.
• Eligible for 10% Administrative Bonus based on company performance annually.
• Paid weekly.