Petsource by Scoular is currently recruiting individuals with strong backgrounds in food manufacturing to work in a new, state-of-the-art, 105,000 square foot freeze-dried pet food ingredients facility. Qualified candidates have the opportunity to help Petsource capitalize on the fast-growing and high-demand freeze-dried pet food market, a market projected to grow 20% per year, by working in a brand-new facility located in Seward, NE.

Position Summary: 

The Senior Research & Innovation (R&I) Scientist will oversee the identification, development, and production of new product recipes for the organization. The Sr. R&I Scientist will support and may drive the development process from idea to implementation to ensure products meet customers' needs. Experience in raw pet food recipe development, freeze dry, meat processing and / or food manufacturing experience is preferred. Additional job duties may include determining cost efficient recipe formulations and production methods, overseeing the layout of product innovation equipment, problem-solving R&I-related production inefficiencies, and ensuring new products follow federal regulations. This role may collaborate with executive management to better understand the organization's target market and overall business strategy. They may also conduct customer research activities to determine gaps in our current market portfolio. The Sr. R&I Scientist will both oversee the creation of research and development technical literature and effectively communicate/present data, both written and verbally.

Primary Job Responsibilities

• Responsible for the development and commercialization of innovative raw and freeze-dried pet food products, from the concept phase through successful commercialization.


• Manage plant trials and new product start-ups.


• Lead product development and innovation programs.


• Responsible for product development projects and prioritization to ensure all key milestones are met consistently before products are launched.


• Create and manage all product development processes and policies to ensure exceptional customer service and food safety and quality are of the highest standard.


• Ensure meetings and presentations to support new product development are of the highest quality and customer-facing value.


• Create ingredient specification guidelines with product attributes and tolerances for adherence during product development and manufacturing process.


• Develop direct relationships with customers to ensure turn-key value-added services can be provided to meet their demands.


• Understand specific customer brand profiles and requirements.


• Collaborate closely with the manufacturing team and across functions to implement effective continuous improvement methodologies across the business to improve yield and quality inefficiencies.


• Utilize experience in the pet food industry to confidently drive innovation.

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