NPD Buyer - Packaging

Greencore; Leeds; On-site; GBP 42,000 - 52,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

25 days holiday

Company share save scheme

Exclusive Greencore employee discount

Job summary

Greencore is seeking an NPD Buyer to source safe, commercially competitive and great tasting packaging solutions. You will manage a small lead buying portfolio and align with Product Development to drive innovation across packaging categories.

The role requires degree calibre, strong Microsoft Office skills, and cross-functional stakeholder management. You will work within Greencore's procurement framework to deliver competitive packaging solutions and support business growth.

Qualifications

• Degree calibre or equivalent.
• Food knowledge and passion.
• Cross functional stakeholder management experience.
• Proficient in the use of Microsoft Office systems.

Responsibilities

• Lead the effective and accurate NPD sourcing on new packaging in line with business requirements.
• Contribute ideas and information and ensure timely delivery of requirements to Product Development teams.
• Maintain supplier knowledge of sourcing area and avoid margin creep through product churn.
• Represent NPD buying and lead specific projects contributing to the strategic innovation agenda.
• Act as conduit between innovation category teams and lead buyers to align future strategy.
• Manage a portfolio of Lead Buying areas ensuring compliance to systems and monitoring risks.
• Maintain a pipeline library of innovative products for the sourcing area.

Skills

Food knowledge

Cross functional stakeholder mgmt

Education

Degree calibre or equivalent

Tools

Microsoft Office

Job description

Why Greencore?

Following the combination with Bakkavor in January 2026, we're one of the UK's leading creators of convenience food, driven by a simple purpose: to make everyday taste better.

As a vibrant and fast-moving business, we're proud to employ over 28,000 talented colleagues across 36 manufacturing sites and 21 distribution depots in the UK and the US. Together, we bring delicious food to life. Our products cover every meal occasion from breakfast through to dinner and dessert, with lunch and snacking in between. In FY25, our shared passion helped us achieve combined revenues of approximately £4bn.

Our extensive direct to store (DTS) network, with 17 depots across the UK, allows us to deliver fresh and frozen food both our own and from trusted partners to thousands of stores every day, ensuring consumers enjoy the very best, whenever and wherever they shop.

We are looking for an NPD (New Product Development) Buyer, to source safe, commercially competitive and great tasting food in line with procurement strategies to provide food innovation solutions for the business. To do this, you will manage a small lead buying portfolio for Greencore, specifically focussed on Packaging.

• Lead the effective and accurate NPD sourcing on new packaging in line with business requirements, contributing ideas and information, and ensuring timely delivery of requirements to the Product Development teams.
• In depth supplier knowledge of sourcing area and avoidance of margin creep through product churn.
• Ensure products are sourced in alignment with Greencore Purchasing Excellence, procurement strategy and objectives; and the process is compliant with the internal functional processes.
• Represent NPD buying and or lead specific projects that contribute to our strategic innovation agenda, identifying suppliers and sourcing ingredients in line with the strategy.
• Act as the conduit between the innovation category teams and the lead buyers for your sourcing areas to ensure future innovation strategy is aligned with consumer, customer and business needs.
• Manage a portfolio of Lead Buying areas within the function, ensuring compliance to systems and processes, monitoring and managing risks relating to material availability and input cost inflation.
• Maintenance of a pipeline library of innovation or great products for the sourcing area that is easily accessible to customer teams.

What we're looking for

• Degree calibre or equivalent
• Food knowledge and passion
• Proficient in the use of Microsoft Office systems
• Cross functional stakeholder management experience

At Greencore we put our people at the core. We celebrate their differences and help everyone to be themselves at work. Together we make every day taste better.

What you'll get in return

• Competitive salary and job-related benefits
• 25 days holiday
• Competitive matched pension contributions
• Company share save scheme

Greencore Qualifications

• Exclusive Greencore employee discount platform
• Access to a full Wellbeing Centre platform

Throughout your time at Greencore, you will be supported with on the job training and development opportunities to further your career.