Food Technologist (R&D)

Shearer's is a leading contract manufacturer and private label supplier in the snack industry in North America. Headquartered in Massillon, Ohio, Shearer's has 17 state-of-the-art, geographically diverse manufacturing facilities in Ohio, Texas, Arkansas, Arizona, Minnesota, Pennsylvania, Virginia, Iowa, Ontario and Alberta, Canada, including one of the industry's first Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design platinum LEED certified facilities in Massillon, Ohio. The Company is known for producing the highest quality snacks in assorted flavors and sizes, including kettle cooked potato chips, traditional potato chips, tortilla chips, cheese curls and other extruded snacks, and corn chips, as well as cookies, crackers, and wafers.

Food Technologist - Bakery Product Development

Location: Burlington, Iowa

Seeking an experienced Food Technologist to join our solutions-driven R&D team. This role will support the formulation, testing, and commercialization of innovative bakery products for a CPG manufacturing company. This role is hands-on and cross-functional, contributing to both new product development and the optimization of existing products. The ideal candidate has a strong foundation in bakery science, food formulation, and ingredient functionality, with the ability to work collaboratively across teams to bring concepts to market efficiently and successfully.

Join our team to help shape the future of our bakery development and deliver great-tasting, consumer-driven products!

Your Seat at the Table:

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  • Lead product formulation and renovation projects from concept to commercialization, supporting the bakery portfolio which includes cookies, crackers, and sugar wafers.
  • Execute bench-top formulations and plant trials in coordination with senior technologists and cross-functional partners.
  • Conduct ingredient testing, product evaluations, competitive benchmarking, sensory, and shelf-life studies to ensure quality, taste, and performance.
  • Support troubleshooting of processing or formulation challenges during product development and scale-up.
  • Collaborate with Procurement, Quality, and Operations to support project timelines and goals.
  • Monitor trends in bakery and food technology to contribute fresh ideas to the product pipeline.
  
  
  
  
  • Assure product development compliance for new products to meet Kosher, USDA organic, GFSI (SQF) and other regulatory needs.
  • Support the creation of nutritional panels, ingredient decks and Shearer's new product development QA and R&D related needs.
  • Track the development of new and proposed products' technical ingredients and raw material specifications including key quality assurance components of allergens, nutritional information, and shelf life.
  • Maintain accurate and effective research and development records, documentation and version control of formulations, ingredients, raw material evaluations, plant trial requests, and trial reports.
  • Conduct trial work in a plant environment and adjust processing parameters and formulas to achieve the intended product outcome.
  • Evaluate finished products against targets and goals for taste, texture, and label requirements.
  
  
  
  

What you Bring to the Table:

• Bachelor's degree in Food Science, Bakery Science, or a related field.
• 3-5 years of experience in product development, preferably within the bakery segment of the CPG industry.
• Working knowledge of bakery ingredient functionality and processing methods.
• Hands-on experience with benchtop and scale-up/production formulation work.
• Strong attention to detail, organizational skills, and technical documentation.
• Ability to manage multiple priorities in a fast-paced environment.
• Familiarity with sensory evaluation, food safety standards, and labeling requirements.

Preferred Experience:

• Exposure to private label, co-manufacturing, or contract manufacturing projects.
• Familiarity with product lifecycle or project management systems.

We Offer a Feast of Benefits

Medical, Dental, Vision, Life, Flexible Spending Account, Retirement Savings Plan with Match, Short Term Disability, Long Term Disability, Group Critical Accident Insurance, Group Critical Illness Insurance, Employee Assistance Plan and numerous opportunities to volunteer in the communities in which we operate.

You will be considered for employment in our inclusive workplace

Because at Shearer's, we are committed to providing equal employment opportunities (EEO) to all employees and applicants for employment without regard to race, color, religion, gender, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, national origin, age, disability, genetic information, marital status, amnesty, protected veteran status, or any other characteristic protected by law.

This is your invitation to apply now!

To all recruitment agencies:Shearer's Snacks does not accept agency resumes. Please do not forward resumes to our jobs alias, employees or any other company location. Shearer's is not responsible for any fees related to unsolicited resumes.

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