Senior Beverage Developer

Wildflower Recruitment Consulting; San Diego (CA); On-site; USD 140,000 - 190,000; Full time

Job summary

Wildflower Recruitment Consulting seeks a Senior Beverage Developer to lead concept-to-commercialization of beverages, partnering with customers, sales and innovation teams in San Diego. You will design formulations, validate processes and guide costed scale-up using a broad portfolio of natural ingredients.

The ideal candidate brings 10+ years in beverage development, strong project management, and deep knowledge of beverage processing technologies.

Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree in a related scientific discipline.
• 10+ years of beverage development experience from concept through commercialization.
• Strong knowledge of beverage processing technologies and manufacturing methods.
• Excellent organizational, project management, and multitasking skills.

Responsibilities

• Develop innovative beverage solutions utilizing flavors, flavor systems, functional ingredients, and coffee & tea extracts.
• Lead beverage development projects from concept through commercialization, including formulation, stability testing, documentation, and costing.
• Develop a wide range of beverage applications including carbonated beverages, functional drinks, ready-to-drink beverages, and coffee/tea-based beverages.
• Apply beverage processing knowledge including pasteurization, homogenization, hot-fill processing, carbonation, and canning.
• Build strong technical relationships with customers and support customer visits and ideation sessions alongside the sales team.
• Participate in innovation presentations, rapid prototyping, and new product concept development.
• Support pilot trials and production runs during product commercialization.
• Manage multiple projects simultaneously while meeting timelines and technical milestones.
• Support lifecycle management initiatives focused on cost reduction and margin optimization.
• Maintain accurate laboratory documentation and follow GLP, ISO procedures, and safety standards.

Skills

Project management

Beverage development

Customer collaboration

Education

Bachelor's degree in Food Science/ Food Engineering/ Chemistry

Job description

As a Senior Beverage Developer, they will support the growth of our beverage and flavor categories. This role will work directly with customers, sales teams, and internal innovation teams to develop winning beverage solutions utilizing extensive portfolio of natural ingredients.

The ideal candidate is a highly technical beverage expert with strong project management skills and a passion for working with customers to bring innovative beverage concepts to life.

How will you contribute:

Essential job functions and duties include, but are not limited to:

• Develop innovative beverage solutions utilizing flavors, flavor systems, functional ingredients, and coffee & tea extracts.
• Lead beverage development projects from concept through commercialization, including formulation, stability testing, documentation, and costing.
• Develop a wide range of beverage applications including carbonated beverages, functional drinks, ready-to-drink beverages, and coffee/tea-based beverages.
• Apply beverage processing knowledge including pasteurization, homogenization, hot-fill processing, carbonation, and canning.
• Build strong technical relationships with customers and support customer visits and ideation sessions alongside the sales team.
• Participate in innovation presentations, rapid prototyping, and new product concept development.
• Support pilot trials and production runs during product commercialization.
• Manage multiple projects simultaneously while meeting timelines and technical milestones.
• Support lifecycle management initiatives focused on cost reduction and margin optimization.
• Maintain accurate laboratory documentation and follow GLP, ISO procedures, and safety standards.

Minimum Requirements/Qualifications:

• Bachelor’s degree in Food Science, Food Engineering, Chemistry, or related scientific discipline.
• 10+ years of beverage development experience from concept through commercialization.
• Strong knowledge of beverage processing technologies and manufacturing methods.
• Excellent organizational, project management, and multitasking skills.