For almost 130 years, Abel & Schafer has been producing baked goods in Europe under the KOMPLET brand name. In 1982 the company established a manufacturing facility in Ronkonkoma, NY to serve the fast-growing markets of the United States, Canada, Mexico, Central/South America, and the Caribbean. To support our continuous growth in these markets, we are currently recruiting a Research & Development Manager who will take full responsibility over all bread and pastry R&D projects and take the lead in developing new product ideas and concepts.
Key Job Responsibilities:
· Manage all bread and pastry R&D projects.
· Develop product (re)formulations and recipes.
· Develop strong cross-functional relationships with the R&D community as well as with Marketing, Sales, Quality, Operations, Engineering, Regulatory, and others.
· Evaluate new ingredients, materials, products and processes with an emphasis on NAFNAC and clean label solutions.
· Execute pilot lab runs, consumer tests, plant trials and validation trials.
· Prepare operating guidelines for product development and ensure a proper documentation flow.
· Generate recipes and supporting documentation for lab samples, such as sample request forms and project labels.
· Participate in resolution of complaints and QA cases.
· Generate re-work recipes when necessary.
· Lead special projects concerning products, processes, equipment, and facility concepts and design.
· Generate Signum Projects and project labels.
· Participate in Food Safety Team meetings.
· Manage time effectively and deliver projects on time and in full.
Qualification:
· B.S. degree in Bakery Science, Food Sciences, Food Engineering, or related scientific field.
· Master Baker or Pastry chef certification.
· 5+ years’ experience in formulation of bakery products.
· 5+ years leadership experience.
· Excellent organizational and communication (written and oral) skills.
· Excellent project management skills with ability to prioritize multiple activities simultaneously.
· Proficient with Microsoft Office suite (Word, Excel, PowerPoint, Teams).
· Willing to travel as required.
· Language skills: English; knowledge of Spanish and/or German a plus.