Research & Development Intern (Summer 2027)

fairlife; Chicago (IL); On-site; USD 32,000 - 45,000; Full time

Job summary

fairlife, LLC in Chicago, IL invites motivated undergraduates to join its 11-week Summer Internship Program. You’ll work with the Research and Development team on product formulation, testing, and data recording, gaining exposure to the full product development cycle.

Open to seniors enrolled in a four-year program with a 3.0 GPA, you’ll develop hands-on skills in a dairy science context, participate in leadership events, and may pursue full-time opportunities after the internship.

Qualifications

• Must be currently enrolled in a four-year undergraduate degree program, entering the Fall semester, post internship, as a senior.
• B.S. Food Science, Dairy Science, Chemical Engineering or closely related field.
• Strong technical foundation in the sciences; dairy knowledge desired but not required.
• GPA 3.0/4.0 or higher.
• Able to take ownership of assignments and complete them.
• Strong verbal and written communication skills with ability to work in a team.

Responsibilities

• Support a project to develop new products, optimize an existing formula, or evaluate ingredient functionality to enhance organoleptic properties or cost.
• Exposure to product development from formulation, pilot plant production through commercialization.
• Ask questions, learn quickly, conduct product testing, comply with lab safety protocols, enter/analyze data, maintain records.

Skills

Undergraduate student

GPA 3.0/4.0

Strong communication

MS Office

English proficiency

Teamwork

Education

B.S. Food Science / Dairy Science / Chemical Eng

Tools

MS Word

Excel

PowerPoint

Job description

fairlife, LLC is a Chicago-based nutrition company that creates great-tasting, nutrition-rich and dairy products to nourish consumers.

With over $3B in annual retail sales, fairlife’s portfolio of delicious, lactose-free, real dairy products includes: fairlife® ultra-filtered milk; Core Power® High Protein Shakes, a sports nutrition drink to support post-workout recovery; fairlife® nutrition plan™, a nutrition shake to support the journey to better health.

A wholly owned subsidiary of The Coca-Cola company, fairlife, LLC has been recognized by both Fast Company and Nielsen for its industry leading innovation.

To learn more about fairlife and its complete line of products, please visit fairlife.com .

about our internship program:

The fairlife Summer Internship Program is designed to welcome interns across our locations to gain meaningful experience and social and professional development opportunities. For 11 weeks, interns will work in one of our four locations: Chicago, IL; Coopersville, MI; Goodyear, AZ; or Webster, NY. fairlife’s paid internship program also offers a summer full of social, professional, and community engagement events including exposure to our senior leadership and executives across the business in small group settings, insight into company initiatives, off-site field trips, and for those qualified and selected, an opportunity to pursue a full-time job opportunity.

The fairlife 2027 Summer Internship Program will take place from May 24 through August 10 at the fairlife location specified in this job description.

job purpose

This internship experience provides an opportunity to work directly with the Research and Development (R&D) team, in Chicago, IL. This role will be focused on supporting R&D initiatives in alignment with company objectives.

skills/qualifications required

• Must be currently enrolled in a four-year undergraduate degree program, entering the Fall semester, post internship, as a senior.
• B.S. Food Science, Dairy Science, Chemical Engineering or Food process engineering or closely related field.
• Possess a strong technical foundation in the sciences; dairy knowledge desired but not required
• Cumulative GPA of 3.0/4.0, or higher
• Ability to take ownership of assignments and complete them
• Strong verbal and written communication skills with the ability to work in a team setting
• Skilled in Microsoft Office Suite including MS Word, Excel, and PowerPoint
• Proficiency in English: Comfortable with both written and verbal communication, including reading and writing.

learning objectives

The intern will handle a responsibilities in the following areas:

• Support a project to either develop new products, optimize an existing product formula, or evaluate ingredient functionality in a product with the objective of enhancing the organoleptic properties or optimizing cost while maintaining the high quality of our products.
• Exposure to different aspects of product development from formulation, and pilot plant production through commercialization. This will include ingredient selection, ingredients testing, raw batch testing and final product testing.
• In all areas the intern is expected to:
  • Ask questions and learn quickly on the job
  • Conduct product testing and evaluations according to project objectives
  • Comply with lab safety protocols
  • Enter and analyze data
  • Create and maintain comprehensive records of the project
  • Maintain security and confidentiality of information within the R&D Department

food safety requirements

• Notify supervision of any repairs or adjustments that are required that may affect product quality or food safety.
• Understand, observe, and comply with the handling and usage of the color-coded container policy while in the Production Areas.
• Perform all duties necessary to meet Company, Customer and/or Government requirements/standards as prioritized by the Company.
• Ability to initiate action to prevent the occurrence of nonconformities relating to Food Safety and the Quality of the product, processes, quality system, or safety system.
• Identify and record any problems relating to Food Safety and the Quality of the ingredients, processes, quality system, or safety system.
• Control further processing or delivery of nonconforming product in terms of Food Safety and Quality issues until the deficiency or unsatisfactory condition has been corrected.
• In the event of absence, another employee with the same skill level will assume the duties and responsibilities as required.

internship location

Chicago, IL

internship duration

May 24-August 10, 2027

reports to

R&D lead

travel requirements

5-10% travel to plant locations

*Base pay offered may vary depending on geography, job-related knowledge, skills, and experience. A full range of medical, financial, and/or other benefits, dependent on the position, is offered.

Base pay range

$28 - $28 USD

fairlife, LLC is an equal opportunity employer. We do not discriminate on the basis of race, color, religion, age, sex, national origin, disability status, genetics, protected veteran status, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, or any other characteristic protected by federal, state or local laws. All qualified applicants and employees will be given equal opportunity. Selection decisions are based on job-related factors.

In addition to its nondiscrimination commitment, the Company will also provide reasonable accommodation of qualified individuals with known disabilities unless doing so would impose an undue hardship on the Company. If you have a disability and would like to request accommodation in order to apply for a position with us, please email [e-mail] .

For Recruitment Agencies

At fairlife, we manage the majority of our hiring internally through our dedicated Talent Acquisition team, which is actively engaged in direct candidate sourcing. Most of our roles are filled through applications submitted via our careers site or through direct outreach by our team.

As our recruitment is primarily handled in-house, we work only occasionally with external agencies, and only those on our existing, pre-approved vendor list. At this time, we are not reviewing or expanding that list.

Unsolicited resumes or submissions from external agencies not authorized by our Talent Acquisition team will be considered direct candidate applications. As such, fairlife will not assume responsibility for any placement fees associated with these submissions.

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