Research & Development Formulation Scientist

Top Gum North America (formerly Island Abbey Nutritionals™); Copiague (NY); On-site; USD 90,000 - 135,000; Full time

Job summary

Top Gum North America (formerly Island Abbey Nutritionals™) in Copiague, NY is seeking an experienced R&D Formulation Scientist to develop new gummy formulas and improve existing ones, ensuring efficiency and process reliability through cross-functional collaboration.

You will work with Gummy Tech Services, Operations, Product Development, and Quality to translate ideas into scalable, commercial-ready products, applying your formulation expertise and project leadership.

Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree required; Master’s preferred.
• 3+ years in gummy product development with nutraceutical experience preferred.
• Experience with GMP, FDA regulations related to product development and manufacturing.
• Strong ability to analyze data and make data-driven formulation decisions.

Responsibilities

• Lead rapid formulation experiments to bring new and existing ideas to life for gummies and related products.
• Develop products from benchtop to scale-up, ensuring parameters support robust manufacturing.
• Collaborate with Product Development, Gummy Tech Services, Operations and Quality for successful launches.
• Adhere to GMPs, SOPs, safety procedures, and maintain organized documentation.

Skills

Formulation development

Scale-up processes

DOE & statistics

Data interpretation

Regulatory knowledge

Lab documentation

Project management

Excel & data tools

Education

Bachelor’s degree in Food Science, Chemistry, Nutritional Sciences, Chemical Engineering, or related field

Job description

REPORTS TO

Head of New Product Development

TERMS OF EMPLOYMENT

Permanent | Full-Time

LOCATION

Copiague, NY

About Us

We provide full-service contract manufacturing, bottling, and packaging solutions for gummy natural health products, supporting clients from concept through launch. Operating within a regulated manufacturing environment, we are committed to quality, compliance, and continuous improvement.

The Opportunity

The R&D Formulation Scientist is responsible for developing new formulas or improving current formulas to meet customer expectations with efficiency and process reliability through cross-functional partnerships. In this role, you’ll apply your formulation expertise, technical insight, and project leadership to translate ideas into high-quality, commercial-ready products. You’ll collaborate closely with Gummy Tech Services, Operations, Product Development, and Quality to deliver formulations that are ready to scale.

What Success Looks Like

• Develop robust, scalable formulations that consistently meet customer, quality, and manufacturing requirements.
• Successfully lead formulation projects from concept to commercialization, delivering results on time and within project objectives.
• Collaborate effectively across R&D, Operations, Quality, and Gummy Tech Services to ensure seamless product scale-up and launch.
• Continuously improve formulations and processes to enhance product performance, process reliability, and manufacturing efficiency.

Responsibilities

• Lead rapid formulation experiments to bring multiple innovation ideas to life for new and existing business opportunities.
• Develop new products through benchtops, preparing them for successful scale up according to established critical process parameters and in close collaboration with Product Development and Gummy Tech Services.
• Lead formulation revisions based on customer's needs, process improvement, regulatory and quality requirement, and alternative raw material supplier etc.
• Interface and collaborate with internal departments including purchasing, manufacturing, inventory control, quality assurance/quality control, sales and customer service as required.
• Adhere to company guidelines, including cGMPs, SOPs and safety procedures.
• Maintain organized work environment and equipment to support consistent experimentation and development

Qualifications

Experience and Education

• Bachelor’s degree in Food Science, Chemistry, Nutritional Sciences, Chemical Engineering, or a related field (Master’s preferred).
• 3+ years in gummy product development with nutraceutical experience strongly preferred.

Technical Skills

• Formulation development and optimization for gummies, soft chews, dietary supplements, or functional food products.
• Scale-up and commercialization experience, translating bench-top formulas into robust manufacturing processes.
• Knowledge of GMP, FDA, and dietary supplement regulations related to product development and manufacturing.
• Strong understanding of ingredient functionality and interactions, including actives, excipients, sweeteners, flavors, colors, and texturizing systems.
• Experience with process validation, product stability, and shelf-life evaluation.
• Ability to analyze and interpret technical data, identify trends, and make data-driven formulation decisions.
• Knowledge of experimental design (DOE) and statistical analysis for formulation and process optimization.
• Proficiency with laboratory equipment, testing methods, and documentation systems.
• Understanding of manufacturing processes including mixing, cooking, depositing, drying, coating, and packaging.
• Project management skills with the ability to manage multiple development projects simultaneously.
• Technical report writing and documentation skills to support product development, validation, and regulatory requirements.
• Proficiency in Microsoft Excel and other data analysis tools for formulation calculations, data evaluation, and project tracking.

Competencies

• Strong attention to detail and organizational skills.
• Excellent technical writing and verbal communication skills is mandatory.
• Must be well organized and demonstrate effective time management skills.
• Demonstrated ability to collaborate cross-functionally
• Work with a focus on Continuous Improvement

This job description is not intended to be all-inclusive. Employees may be required to perform other job-related duties as needed to meet business, operational, quality, safety, or regulatory requirements.

Our Commitment to Inclusive Hiring

We are committed to building an inclusive and accessible workplace. We welcome applications from individuals of all backgrounds and experiences. Accommodations are available throughout the recruitment process upon request.