Process Development Scientist

Hoxton Farms; City Of London; On-site; GBP 55,000; Full time

Job summary

A pioneering food technology company in London seeks a skilled bioprocess scientist to optimise cell culture processes. This role offers the chance to work in a startup focused on cultivating pork fat for the food industry, with a competitive salary, stock options, and a collaborative environment. The ideal candidate has a PhD in a related field and hands-on experience in tissue culture lab settings.

Benefits

Highly competitive salary (£55k)

Stock option plan

Brand new lab and office

Weekly socials and events

Pension plan (matching up to 5%)

25 days’ holiday + bank holidays

Supportive and collaborative environment

Qualifications

• Minimum of 2 years’ experience in a mammalian tissue culture lab.
• Practical experience with mammalian suspension cultures.
• Experience in development of downstream processing methods.

Responsibilities

• Optimise cell culture and bioprocess parameters.
• Validate new processes in bench-scale bioreactors.
• Monitor media utilisation and guide continuous process improvement.

Skills

Experience in mammalian tissue culture lab

Process optimisation for increased cell density

Bioprocess monitoring and analytical instrumentation

Teamwork and collaboration

Attention to detail

Education

PhD in tissue engineering, biotechnology or related discipline

Tools

ELN software

Job description

What you’ll do

• Optimise cell culture and bioprocess parameters to enhance cell density and promote efficient differentiation in suspension shake flasks.
• Monitor media utilisation and critical bioprocess parameters to guide continuous process improvement.
• Assess and demonstrate the scalability of optimised cell culture and bioprocess conditions across different culture volumes and formats.
• Validate and refine newly developed processes in bench-scale bioreactors to support subsequent technology transfer to the production team.
• Optimise downstream processing workflows to improve product yield, recovery, and overall process efficiency.

What we’re looking for

• A minimum of 2 years’ experience in a mammalian tissue culture lab in industry or academia.
• A PhD (or equivalent experience in industry) in tissue engineering, chemical engineering, biotechnology, cell biology, biophysics or a related discipline.
• Practical experience with mammalian suspension cultures using shake flasks, spinner vessels, stirred-tank vessels, and bioreactors.
• Experience in process optimisation for increased cell density or improved differentiation efficiency in mammalian cells in suspension.
• Experience with bioprocess monitoring and analytical instrumentation.
• Proficiency in conducting media analysis, including metabolite, pH, and osmolality evaluations.
• Familiarity with cell line development processes, including high-throughput cell screening for defined outputs.
• Experience in development of downstream processing methods.
• R&D project management.
• GLP- or GMP-compliant tissue culture techniques.
• Enthusiasm, curiosity and attention to detail.
• A talent for teamwork and collaboration.

Bonus points for experience with

• ATMP R&D or manufacture
• Sterile culture media preparation
• Stem cell expansion and differentiation
• Developing scale-down models for high-throughput screening
• Establishment of Master and Working Cell Banks
• Laboratory automation
• Lab inventory management
• Electronic Laboratory Notebook (ELN) software

Why join us?

• Be a key player in establishing and scaling a bioprocess that allows us to scale cultivated fat and meet ambitious commercial targets
• Work alongside expert cell biology, bioprocess, hardware and software teams to implement a novel bioreactor platform for food and biotech
• Join a fast-paced startup culture that values responsibility, agency and technical excellence

Perks & benefits

• 💰 Highly competitive salary (£55k)
• 📈 Stock option plan
• 🏛️ Brand new lab and office in Old Street
• 🥳 Weekly socials and events
• 🏡 Pension plan (matching up to 5%)
• 🏖️ 25 days’ holiday + bank holidays
• 👐 Supportive and collaborative environment
• 💪 Being part of something amazing

About Hoxton Farms

Hoxton Farms grow cultivated pork fat, a healthy and delicious ingredient for the food industry. Cofounded in 2020 by Max Jamilly and Ed Steele, we are building the world’s most scalable and cost-effective tech stack for mammalian cell biomanufacturing – and we’re monetising it with a premium B2B ingredient. Hoxton Farms are a team of 50 based in London. We have raised from investors including Founders Fund, Collab Fund, FSV/F-Prime and Global Brain.

Healthy fats. B2B cultivated fat is fast to market and will dominate a premium niche. Compared to traditional fat, cultivated pork fat is healthier and more scalable. Hoxton Farms have commercial traction with meat/CPG companies including some of the largest food companies in Asia.

Cost and scale. Hoxton Farms have patented scalable, low-cost, high-yield bioreactors for mammalian stem cells. We opened a pilot production facility in London in 2023.

Team. Hoxton Farms have a brilliant and friendly team including world-class talent from the cultivated meat, biotech and engineering industries – all under one roof in central London.

Hoxton Farms is an equal opportunity employer committed to providing a working environment that embraces inclusion, diversity and belonging.

If you believe you would add value to our company but don’t meet all the criteria, we would still love to hear from you. We especially encourage applications from female+, LGBTQIA+, disabled and Black, Asian and Minority Ethnic (BAME) candidates, as these groups are underrepresented in the tech industry.