Pet Product Development Scientist III

Headquartered in Lakeville, Minn., Post Consumer Brands, a business unit of Post Holdings, Inc., is dedicated to providing people and their pets with delicious food choices for every taste and budget. The company's portfolio includes beloved brands such as Honey Bunches of Oats™, PEBBLES™, Grape-Nuts™, Malt-O-Meal™ cereal, Peter Pan™ peanut butter, Rachael Ray® Nutrish™, Kibbles 'n Bits™, and 9Lives™ pet food, as well as private label solutions in pet food, cereal, nut butters, and granola.

About the role

The R&D Scientist III – Pet Product Development leads product development initiatives and testing to translate consumer insights into technical design requirements. This role involves formulating new and existing pet products, managing project activities, and driving cross-functional collaboration to support innovation, cost optimization, and quality enhancement aligned with company goals.

Responsibilities

• Develop and formulate new products and improvements to existing products within AAFCO requirements.
• Ensure product activities meet company cost, capacity, quality, marketing, and product development requirements.
• Coordinate and run experimental designs (in partnership with Pilot Plant and Manufacturing Sites) to test hypotheses in sensory/palatability, stability, and other key technical deliverables; communicate results, key learnings, and recommendations.
• Author or contribute to technical proposals, summaries, presentations, and project reports.
• Lead project or technical teams to proactively meet project needs and timing.
• Collaborate with internal and external team members to develop key tasks and project plans for timely completion of goals.
• Support the identification and solution of cost savings, product/packaging changes, equipment modifications, and manufacturability issues using appropriate scientific principles.

Requirements

• BS in Food Science, Chemical Engineering, Animal Nutrition, or related field.
• Minimum of five (5) years of relevant pet experience in Research & Development.
• Pet Food and/or Snacks formulation and product development experience is highly desired.
• Experience with food processes such as extrusion, thermal processing, or baking is a plus.
• Experience with formulation software such as Concept 5 is a plus.

Skills

• Demonstrated problem-solving skills and proven innovation/creativity.
• Ability to work effectively in a team-based environment with multiple functional groups.
• Excellent written and verbal communication skills.
• Ability to manage multiple projects in a fast-paced environment, meet deadlines, and communicate status.
• Strong project management, negotiation, and leadership skills.

Schedule

Hybrid work schedule: 3 days per week in office at the Lakeville, MN headquarters.

Up to 25% travel required.

Pay

$80,166 – $118,645 per year.