Lead Scientist, Cultured Dairy & Fermentation

Dairy-Farmers-of-America,-Inc.; Springfield (MO); On-site; USD 150,000 - 190,000; Full time

Job summary

Dairy Farmers of America in Springfield, MO, is seeking a Principal Scientist to lead cultured dairy and fermentation initiatives from concept to commercialization. You will bring deep dairy fermentation science expertise, mentor R&D teams, and drive scale-up across bench, pilot, and manufacturing environments.

The role emphasizes starter culture performance, acidification kinetics, texture development, and shelf-life design, with collaboration across engineering, operations, QA, and regulatory

Qualifications

• Bachelor's degree in Food Science, Dairy Science, or related field.
• 10+ years of industry experience in R&D and product development related to cultured dairy.
• Proven track record in commercializing cultured dairy products.
• Expert knowledge of cottage cheese, yogurt, and cultured dairy processing.
• Strong communication and cross-functional collaboration skills.

Responsibilities

• Lead development of cultured dairy products from concept to commercialization.
• Mentor R&D resources and collaborate with QA, regulatory, and operations.
• Translate bench formulas into scalable processes and manufacturing platforms.
• Design bench microbiology, pilot plant trials, and analytical testing.
• Drive speed-to-market, ROI, and IP opportunities and support commercialization decisions.

Skills

Dairy fermentation science

Starter culture performance

Milk substrate design

Acidification kinetics

PH control

Texture development

Curd formation

Whey separation

Post-fermentation handling

Sensory performance

Shelf-life design

Food safety by design

Scale-up knowledge

Education

B.S. in Food Science or related

Job description

Dairy Farmers of America in Springfield, MO, is seeking a Principal Scientist to lead cultured dairy and fermentation initiatives from concept to commercialization. You will bring deep dairy fermentation science expertise, mentor R&D teams, and drive scale-up across bench, pilot, and manufacturing environments.

The role emphasizes starter culture performance, acidification kinetics, texture development, and shelf-life design, with collaboration across engineering, operations, QA, and regulatory