R&D Food Scientist

Ready to turn your bakery science expertise into products people actually eat? Gpac is partnering with a growing food ingredients company seeking an R&D Food Scientist to join its New Jersey team.

About the role

This is an exciting opportunity for a hands-on food scientist who enjoys formulating, experimenting, troubleshooting, and taking products from the bench to full-scale production. You'll have a hands-on role in developing and improving bakery products and ingredient systems while working closely with R&D, Operations, Quality, Regulatory, and Procurement.

Responsibilities

• Develop and optimize bakery products including breads, cakes, cookies, pastries, tortillas, and other baked goods
• Create and modify formulations based on product performance, cost, quality, and customer requirements
• Take products from bench-top development → pilot trials → full-scale commercialization
• Troubleshoot manufacturing challenges involving mixing, dough performance, color, texture, variability, and ingredient functionality
• Evaluate ingredients such as flours, starches, enzymes, emulsifiers, hydrocolloids, leavening systems, colors, and natural additives
• Design and execute experiments to improve texture, flavor, shelf life, consistency, and performance
• Conduct sensory evaluations, shelf-life studies, stability testing, and plant trials
• Partner with Operations and QA to successfully launch new formulations into production
• Support ingredient optimization, reformulation, and cost-reduction initiatives
• Develop product specifications, batch sheets, SOPs, and processing parameters
• Support supplier qualification and validation of new ingredients
• Train Production and QA teams on new products, processes, and best practices
• Lead and support continuous improvement projects using data-driven approaches
• Ensure products meet food safety, regulatory, customer, and quality requirements

Requirements

• Bachelor's degree in Food Science, Baking Science, Food Technology, Food Engineering, or related field
• 3-5+ years of food science/product development experience, ideally within bakery ingredients, food ingredients, or CPG
• Strong knowledge of bakery ingredient functionality and formulation
• Hands-on understanding of mixing, fermentation, proofing, baking, and cooling
• Experience taking products through scale-up, plant trials, and commercialization
• Knowledge of dough rheology, texture analysis, and shelf-life optimization
• Experience troubleshooting bakery production issues
• Working knowledge of GMPs, HACCP, food safety, and regulatory requirements
• Clean-label formulation or ingredient replacement experience is a plus
• A hands-on, collaborative approach and the ability to manage multiple projects

Benefits

• Comprehensive benefits package
• Advancement and career growth opportunities
• Opportunity to work on new product development and commercialization
• A highly collaborative role with visibility across R&D, Operations, Quality, Regulatory, and Procurement
• The chance to make a direct impact on products and processes from concept through commercialization

Pay

$110,000-$130,000 salary

Relocation

Relocation assistance to New Jersey available.