New Product Development Assistant – Maternity Cover-Redgrave

Gressingham Foods; Redgrave; On-site; GBP 60,000 - 80,000; Part time

Job summary

A leading food manufacturing company in Redgrave is seeking a New Product Development Assistant to join their dynamic NPD team. You will support the development of new poultry products, manage NPD kitchens, and assist in various product trials. Ideal candidates will have some experience in a professional kitchen, good communication skills, and a passion for food. The role offers flexible hours and competitive pay, starting in January 2026.

Benefits

Reduced cost staff shop

Opportunities for career progression

Private counselling support services

Subsidised canteen

Employee Draw

Long Service Awards

Freebie Fridays

Qualifications

• Experience of working within a professional kitchen or catering environment.
• Full driver’s license required.
• Good organizational skills.

Responsibilities

• Manage New Product Development kitchens ensuring hygiene standards.
• Prepare product concept samples for customer presentations.
• Liaise with ingredient suppliers.

Skills

Experience in a professional kitchen

Good communication skills

Ability to multitask

Passion for food

Tools

Excel

PowerPoint

Job description

Gressingham Foods are the UK’s leading duck grower and manufacturer. Based in Redgrave, Suffolk. Gressingham have an opening to recruit into their New Product Development team and would like to give the opportunity for a New Product Development Assistant / Technician to work in a small fast-paced team to develop and learn. The successful candidate will be an integral member of the NPD team developing new Poultry products. This person will provide support to the NPD team and other departments during all stages of development from kitchen concept to launch.

This role is office based in Redgrave 30 hrs per week across Mon – Friday between 7am – 6pm. Happy to be flexible to what suits the successful candidate. To start in January 2026. Pay Rate: £13.65 per hour.

The Role

• Day to day management of New Product Development Kitchens ensuring they are to the required hygiene standard, tidy and organised.
• Preparation of product concept samples for customer presentations, repeat samples for customer reviews and required samples for PR and Photography requests.
• Intake and management of all new ingredients arriving for the new product development.
• Liaising with ingredients suppliers.
• Help with the updating of internal paperwork, updating recipes, cooking trials etc
• Assist in the development of new product cooking instructions, then cooking validations.
• Liaising with Factory Production, Distribution, Technical regarding Raw material requirements, incoming and outgoing samples.
• Entering many areas of the factory daily, collecting meat/ingredients, working with production on trials, organization on development products in cold storage.
• Assistance with the organization of factory trials, (scale up from kitchen concept).
• Shopping for market reviews, customer presentations and visitor lunches.
• Organising of the diary for the customer sample schedule
• Possible support off site at customer presentations
• All relevant training will be given.
• Busy days full of variety, predominantly on your feet.

The Person

• Experience of working within a professional kitchen or catering environment
• Good knowledge and understanding of a factory environment – not essential.
• Good written and verbal communication skills
• Ability to work in a fast paced ever changing environment with a large range of projects.
• Self-motivated, enthusiastic, and quick to learn.
• Able to multitask on a large variety of tasks and channeling in priority order.
• Full driver’s license required – ESSENTIAL.
• A passion for food… everything food
• Confident Cook
• Polite, professional, Self-motivated, personable & effective communicator at all levels
• Good organization skills
• Team player.
• PC Literate with knowledge of Excel, Power point etc
• Bubbly and Energetic
• Happy to Learn, not afraid to give it a go.

Benefits Include

• Reduced cost staff shop
• Opportunities to further train and develop further (career progression)
• Private counselling support services
• Auto enrolment Pension available
• Subsidised “Wild Duck Canteen” serving hot food and tasty snacks
• Staff and family events
• Monthly Employee Draw
• Long Service Awards
• “Freebie Fridays”

If this is a role you are interested in, please email [e-mail] your CV.