Raw Material Technologist

Zertus UK & Ireland; Fakenham; Hybrid; GBP 25,000 - 45,000; Full time

Job summary

An established industry player is seeking a detail-oriented Raw Material Technologist to join their Technical/Supplier Assurance team. This role is pivotal in ensuring the quality of snacks and chocolates by developing and maintaining material specifications for suppliers. You will collaborate closely with various teams, ensuring compliance with safety standards and legislation. If you have a scientific background and a passion for quality assurance in the food industry, this is an exciting opportunity to contribute to a company that values innovation and quality in its products. Join a dynamic team and play a key role in delivering delicious snacks that delight customers.

Benefits

Pension (4% Employer Contributions)

Life Assurance Scheme at x4 basic salary

Health Care Cash Plan

25 days annual leave plus bank holidays

Holiday Purchase Salary Sacrifice Scheme

Cycle to Work Salary Sacrifice Scheme

Electric Car Salary Sacrifice Scheme

Family friendly policies

Company Wellbeing agenda

Training and Development Opportunities

Qualifications

• Degree in food science or related field is essential.
• Experience in food manufacturing processes is required.
• Strong analytical and project management skills are crucial.

Responsibilities

• Manage raw material specifications and ensure compliance with standards.
• Collaborate with suppliers and internal teams for quality assurance.
• Generate monthly reports on supplier material and specifications.

Skills

Analytical skills

Communication skills

Attention to detail

Project management

Problem-solving

Understanding of HACCP principles

Relationship building

Flexibility

Education

Degree in Food Science

Degree in Food Technology

Degree in Chemistry

Tools

Excel

Word

PowerPoint

Outlook

Job description

Overview

Zertus UK & Ireland (Humdinger, Kinnerton Confectionery, Lir Chocolates)

Raw Material Technologist

Location: Kinnerton Fakenham (Norfolk) site with hybrid working options

Hours: Monday - Friday 37.5 hours per week

At Zertus UK & Ireland, we are passionate about creating delicious snacks and chocolates that people love. As we continue to innovate and expand, we are seeking a dedicated and detail-oriented Raw Material Technologist to join our Technical/ Supplier Assurance team and play a crucial role in maintaining the quality of our products.

As a Raw Material Technologist, you will be responsible for developing, maintaining, and approving material specifications for both existing and new suppliers. This role is critical in ensuring our products meet the highest standards of quality and safety, contributing directly to the company’s due diligence requirements. You’ll work closely with suppliers and internal teams, ensuring that the ingredients we use in our snacks and chocolates are top-notch.

Responsibilities

• Work across the Zertus group of Businesses to manage the raw material specification portfolio.
• Develop, risk assess, maintain, and approve material specifications for existing and new suppliers as part of the company’s due diligence program.
• Work closely with NPD and technical teams to ensure that materials specified are fit for purpose operationally and meet all legislation and Customer code of practice requirements.
• Maintain accurate information within all relevant material databases ensuring alignment with finished product specifications and managing any change with relevant teams.
• Collaborate with suppliers, collating information, specifications, and assisting the technical department with detailed customer supplier information requests and non-conformances.
• Work closely with the intake team to ensure agreed quality and testing parameters are accurate and achievable and are aligned to the approved suppliers and group material specifications.
• Maintain all raw material related data and information in a consistent way ensuring compliance with current legislation, customers codes of practice and accreditation schemes.
• Ensure supplier and material accreditation schemes such as SEDEX, RFA/UTZ, Fairtrade, Organic, Kosher & RSPO etc. are maintained throughout the material conformance process stages and ongoing compliance.
• Generate and report supplier material and specification KPI’s on a monthly basis.
• Develop a working knowledge of the snacking and chocolate industry.

Qualifications

• Scientific background: degree educated in food science, food technology, chemistry or product quality-based subject or related discipline.
• Manufacturing process experience in food or related sectors.
• Analytical and experimental skills.
• Inquisitive by nature and willingness to look for novel solutions.
• Good communication skills.
• Able to work independently and with initiative.
• Understanding of HACCP principles, nutrition information and legal compliance of materials.
• Ability to build strong relationships with suppliers and across teams within the business.
• Excellent attention to detail, good time management, highly self-motivated with outstanding diplomacy skills.
• Computer literate - Able to use Excel, Word, PowerPoint & Outlook, as well as other online software systems.
• Experience in NPD or the development of functional materials.
• Understanding of UK/EU food legislation.
• Demonstrable project and workload management skills.
• Flexible approach to a dynamic working environment.

Rewards & Benefits

• Pension (4% Employer Contributions).
• Life Assurance Scheme at x4 basic salary.
• Health Care Cash Plan via Paycare (Dental, Optical, Chiropody, Professional Therapy, Counselling cover), along with access to Paycare Perks for exclusive high street and retailer discounts.
• 25 days of annual leave plus bank holidays.
• Holiday Purchase Salary Sacrifice Scheme – buy up to one extra week per year (subject to meeting minimum criteria).
• Cycle to Work Salary Sacrifice Scheme (subject to meeting minimum criteria).
• Electric Car Salary Sacrifice Scheme (subject to meeting minimum criteria).
• Family friendly policies including hybrid working opportunities and Maternity and Paternity leave above statutory minimum.
• Annual engagement calendar covering an array of activities and educational events promoting diversity and inclusion.
• Participate in supporting your local community with opportunities to spend one day per year volunteering or fundraising and gain company-matched sponsorship.
• Company Wellbeing agenda including annual Wellbeing Week, Menopause Support Group and Mental Health First Aid programme.
• Access to staff shops with exclusive discounts.
• Monthly employee recognition scheme via the ‘Zertus Values Awards’.
• Recruitment Refer a Friend rewards.
• Training and Development Opportunities (Leadership courses, External qualifications, Professional memberships).
• Engagement with GroceryAid.

About Us

Zertus UK & Ireland comprises three companies – Humdinger Foods, Kinnerton Confectionery, and Lir Chocolates. Our expertise spans the manufacturing of a diverse range of snacks and chocolates, with multiple facilities and offices strategically positioned throughout the UK and Ireland. With a commitment to innovation, we strive to craft products that captivate and delight our customers. Our talented teams have created a growing portfolio of our own famous brands including NOMO, Sun Valley Nuts, Kinnerton Kids, The Fruit Factory, Yum & Yay, Humzingers, as well as collaborations with Bailey's, Guinness and Budweiser!

As the UK & Irish division of Zertus GmbH, headquartered in Hamburg and boasting a workforce of over 2000 employees across Europe, we are part of a dynamic and expansive global network.

When you join Zertus, you will be based at one of our Humdinger, Kinnerton, Bromborough or Lir Chocolates UK/ Ireland locations, unless your role is hybrid/home-based.

Our manufacturing Locations: Heckington, Sherburn-in-Elmet, Fakenham, Bromborough, Navan (Ireland). We have a hot-desking office space in Hull (East Yorkshire) and also in Camden, London.

Application & Interview Process

Zertus is an equal opportunity employer. We celebrate diversity and are committed to creating an inclusive environment for all employees.

Your application will be reviewed and entered into the selection process; if successful, you will receive a call or email from a member of our Recruitment or HR Team. If successful following this, your application will be sent to the hiring manager for review. If selected, you will attend a two-stage interview process with one online interview and one on-site interview.

Please let us know if you require any special arrangements or adjustments to be made for your interview. The provision of this information is likely to include special category data and is therefore covered by data protection laws. We ask for this information so that we are fully aware of any adjustments needed and we will use the information provided to inform our decisions about making those changes.