Product Development Manager (Food)

Lead innovation. Shape the future of our food products.

This is a direct-hire opportunity for an experienced and passionate R&D Manager to lead product development and innovation from idea to pilot-scale reality. You'll combine food science expertise with leadership and creativity to bring high-quality, compliant, and consumer-driven food products to lifewhile seeing your work move from the lab to manufacturing.

• Lead the development of new food products and line extensions aligned with business goals, brand strategy, and consumer trends.
• Translate consumer insights, customer needs, and marketing concepts into scalable product formulations and prototypes.
• Drive formulation development, ingredient selection, and bench-scale experimentation.

• Serve as a technical authority in food science, formulation, processing, and ingredient functionality.
• Oversee sensory evaluation, shelf-life studies, and product performance testing.
• Ensure formulations meet quality, nutritional, cost, and regulatory targets.

• Manage, mentor, and develop R&D scientists, technologists, and technicians.
• Establish R&D best practices, workflows, and documentation standards.
• Manage R&D budgets, project timelines, and laboratory resources.

• Partner with Marketing, Sales, Quality Assurance, Regulatory, and Commercialization teams.
• Support commercialization efforts by delivering robust formulations, specifications, and technical documentation.
• Participate in stage-gate reviews and innovation pipeline readiness assessments.

• Ensure product formulations comply with all applicable food safety and regulatory requirements (FDA, USDA, labeling).
• Collaborate with QA and Regulatory teams on ingredient approvals, claims substantiation, and documentation.
• Maintain accurate and complete R&D records, formulations, and trial results.

• Stay current on food trends, emerging ingredients, processing technologies, and competitive products.
• Identify opportunities for product renovation, cost reduction, and quality improvement.
• Champion a culture of innovation, experimentation, and scientific rigor.

• Bachelor's degree in Food Science, Food Engineering, Chemistry, or a related field (Master's preferred).
• 7+ years of experience in food product development or R&D, with at least 3 years in a leadership role.
• Demonstrated success bringing food products from concept through pilot-scale development.

• Strong knowledge of food formulation, ingredient functionality, and processing principles.

• Direct-hire role with long-term career growth and stability.
• Lead innovation with a high level of ownership and visibility.
• Collaborate with cross-functional teams in a quality-driven organization.
• Competitive compensation, bonus potential, and a consistent weekday schedule.

Ready to make an impact? Apply today and take the next step in your R&D leadership career.

ABR Employment Services is an Equal Opportunity/Affirmative Action Employer. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, sex, national origin, disability, or protected veterans' status.