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Senior Product Developer

Are you looking for a new challenge?

Major Recruitment have a brilliant opportunity for a Senior Product Developer! You will be joining a large Food Manufacturing company based in Consett.

As a Senior Product Developer, you will be responsible for the development and innovation of new products from concept to launch for both retailers and company’s own brand. You will provide a site-based product development resource based in Consett, supporting the development department with NPD, EPD, Value engineering projects as well as other business or customer related projects.

As a Senior Product Developer, you will:

• Interpret retailer briefs ensuring innovative and technologically sound product designs are generated in line with customer expectations, operational constraints, and commercial needs of the business.
• Market research to investigate and identify customer needs, upcoming trends with aim to take advantage of potential business opportunities.
• Carry out a feasibility study with key stakeholders on new product briefs.
• Recipe development and reformulation to achieve a product that meets customer expectations and that is financially and technically feasible.
• Completing account specific documentation and project work when required (Sample Submission Forms, NPDTT’s, QAS’s)
• Reviewing and approving artwork
• Working with new and current suppliers to source new, high quality and cost-effective ingredients and assist Technical in the approval of new suppliers/ingredients by gathering all necessary data.
• Shelf-Life testing of new products
• Organise and attend factory trials and ensure output of the trial is documented and communicated to the business.
• In depth knowledge of thermal processing to aid with development and factory trials.
• Nutritional testing of new products to ensure that the nutritional composition of a new product meets the requirements of the retailers’ nutritional policies and/or fulfils nutritional claims.
• Cooking instruction development for all new products to ensure that a food to safe to consume and of a high quality for consumers when cooked.
• Assist the Technical Dept. as and when required including HACCP, ensuring allergen information, food safety legislations, food industry guidelines and retailer COP maintained and up to date on an ongoing basis.
• Collect raw materials from the factory when needed and ensure sample deliveries are located.
• Visiting retailers and shopping to support sample preparations or customer meeting refreshments as required by the business.
• Liaise with key stakeholders on customer visits for first production if required
• Respond to retailer requests for samples for testing, Brandbank, photography, exhibitions, awards etc.
• Liaise with different teams to organise cross functional meetings.
• Organise and conduct handover meeting for product launches to site’s key stakeholders.
• From time to time provide cover for other team members.
• Actively engage blue sky thinking and put forward well-thought-out concepts with clear rationale.
• Support the kitchen to deliver customer or development samples
• Review and maintain department codes of practice, procedures, and policies
• Review and maintain customer & brand codes of practice
• Improving and developing ways of working i.e. paperwork to be used by the whole team, shelf-life paperwork, nutritional analysis.
• Support and look after the team’s training and development in relation to their role
• Attend Purchase technical meetings and relay the NPD actions and updates to the rest of the team.
• Participate in business events and conferences
• Understand and work with purchasing and technical teams to review palm oil status in raw materials.
• Reviewing unique raw materials to the business and contribute to ingredient and sku rationalisation initiatives.
• Ensure equipment and stationery is replenished when needed
• Organise team job rota and managing workload
• Provide support and assistant to the rest of the team
• Mentor and carry out appraisal for direct report
• Deputise for NPD Manager as required

Skills required as a Senior Product Developer:

• Previous experience as an NPD Technologist within the food manufacturing industry.
• Good understanding of Food Safety
• Full driving licence to support team in shopping, visiting stores, business sites and customers
• Good communication and interpersonal skills.
• IT literate, able to work confidently with Microsoft Office (e-mail, Word, Excel, etc).
• Understanding of Health & Safety

If you are interested, please click apply now and one of our recruitment specialists will be in touch.

Major Recruitment are an employment agency working on behalf of our client. Should you be seeking a new permanent position, temporary assignment, or contract you will find our staff professional and courteous and our interview process straight forward.

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