Food Pilot Plant Leader: Innovation & Scale-Up

Ingredion Incorporated; Bridgewater Township (NJ); Hybrid; USD 124,000 - 165,000; Full time

Job summary

Ingredion Incorporated in Bridgewater, NJ, seeks a Food Pilot Plant Manager to lead the Bridgewater Food Pilot Plant, bridging R&D and commercial manufacturing. The role focuses on safe, efficient operations, prototype development, and scale-up for customer projects, with a strong emphasis on safety, quality, and regulatory compliance.

The candidate will drive continuous improvement, oversee maintenance and capital planning, and develop a high-performing team of operators and technicians in a

Qualifications

• Bachelor's degree in Food Science, Chemical Engineering, Food Engineering, Engineering, or related technical discipline.
• 10+ years of experience in food manufacturing, pilot plant operations, or related technical operations.
• 3+ years of leadership experience managing technical, operations, or manufacturing teams.
• Experience with product development, process scale-up, and commercialization activities.
• Experience in food manufacturing with strong knowledge of food safety systems (GMP, HACCP, FSMA, OSHA).
• Strong understanding of pilot plant operations, processing technologies, and manufacturing systems.

Responsibilities

• Lead all aspects of the Bridgewater Food Pilot Plant, ensuring safe, efficient, and compliant operations.
• Translate laboratory concepts into scalable manufacturing solutions for projects.
• Oversee prototype development and production for customer evaluations and launches.
• Provide technical leadership for product optimization, process troubleshooting, and manufacturing transfers.
• Drive safety, quality, regulatory compliance, and continuous improvement across operations.
• Monitor KPIs, manage maintenance and capital planning, and develop team capabilities.

Skills

Leadership

Project management

Problem solving

Decision making

Education

Bachelor's degree in a related technical discipline

Job description

Ingredion Incorporated in Bridgewater, NJ, seeks a Food Pilot Plant Manager to lead the Bridgewater Food Pilot Plant, bridging R&D and commercial manufacturing. The role focuses on safe, efficient operations, prototype development, and scale-up for customer projects, with a strong emphasis on safety, quality, and regulatory compliance.

The candidate will drive continuous improvement, oversee maintenance and capital planning, and develop a high-performing team of operators and technicians in a