Food Scientist Drive Innovation in Food Product Development

Location: Springfield, Illinois Job Type: Full-Time Industry: Food & Beverage Manufacturing About The Opportunity We are seeking an experienced and innovative Food Scientist to join a growing food manufacturing organization. This individual will play a key role in developing, improving, and commercializing food products while ensuring quality, food safety, regulatory compliance, and consumer expectations are met. This is an excellent opportunity for a hands-on food science professional who enjoys working across R&D, product development, manufacturing, quality, and operations. Key Responsibilities Develop and optimize new food and beverage products from concept through commercialization.Conduct bench-top trials, pilot plant testing, and production-scale trials.Develop and refine product formulations, specifications, and processing parameters.Evaluate ingredients, raw materials, flavors, textures, shelf life, and product performance.Troubleshoot product and manufacturing issues and recommend corrective actions.Collaborate with Operations, Quality Assurance, Procurement, Marketing, and Sales.Coordinate product testing, sensory evaluations, and consumer feedback.Maintain accurate R&D documentation, formulas, specifications, and technical records.Support scale-up and commercialization of new and reformulated products.Ensure products meet applicable food safety, quality, labeling, and regulatory requirements.Research emerging ingredients, technologies, trends, and consumer preferences.Assist with cost optimization and ingredient alternatives while maintaining product quality. Qualifications Bachelor's degree in Food Science, Food Technology, Chemistry, or a related discipline.Experience in food or beverage product development, R&D, or food manufacturing.Strong understanding of food ingredients, formulations, processing, and sensory evaluation.Experience with product scale-up and commercialization preferred.Knowledge of GMP, HACCP, food safety, and regulatory requirements.Strong analytical, problem-solving, and project-management skills.Excellent communication and cross-functional collaboration abilities.Ability to work effectively in both a laboratory and manufacturing environment. What We're Looking For The ideal candidate is a creative problem solver and hands-on food science professional who can take a product from an initial concept through successful commercialization. You should be comfortable working in a fast-paced manufacturing environment and collaborating with multiple departments to deliver safe, high-quality, commercially successful products. Why Join Us? Opportunity to contribute to innovative product development.Collaborative and fast-paced food manufacturing environment.Career growth and professional development opportunities.Competitive compensation and benefits.Opportunity to make a direct impact on new product innovation and manufacturing success. Apply today to bring your food science expertise and innovation to a growing organization! All qualified applicants will receive consideration without regard to race, age, color, sex (including pregnancy), religion, national origin, disability, sexual orientation, gender identity, marital status, military status, genetic information, or any other status protected by applicable laws or regulations. GPAC (Growing People and Companies) is an award-winning search firm specializing in placing quality professionals within multiple industries across the United States since 1990. We are extremely competitive, client-focused and realize that our value is in our ability to deliver the right solutions at the right time.