Senior Culinary R&D Lead: Food Innovation & Scale-Up

Veggies Made Great; Piscataway Township (NJ); On-site; USD 120,000 - 180,000; Full time

Job summary

Veggies Made Great is seeking a Research Chef to lead culinary-driven product development within our R&D team. You will blend culinary creativity with food science, ensure regulatory compliance, and translate trends into consumer-focused products.

You will manage multiple projects, collaborate with Marketing, QA and Operations, and mentor junior staff. Travel for plant trials and industry events is expected, with a strong emphasis on quality and speed to market.

Qualifications

• Culinary degree from an accredited institution.
• BS in Food Science preferred but not required.
• 10+ years of culinary experience with at least 5 years in product development in the food manufacturing industry.
• Experience developing products for large scale manufacturing and a strong understanding of food science and ingredient functionality.
• Experience with sensory evaluation and product demonstrations at trade shows.
• Ability to manage multiple projects and meet deadlines in a fast-paced environment.
• Proficient in Excel, Word, Office and Genesis.
• Excellent communication, documentation and presentation skills.
• Willingness to travel for plant trials, trade shows or industry events.
• Bi-lingual (English/Spanish) language skills a plus.

Responsibilities

• Lead culinary inspired innovation projects from bench top formulation to commercialization.
• Develop gold standard restaurant quality products as references for commercialization.
• Deliver chef inspired recipes, internal specs, documentation, and labeling to meet regulatory guidelines.
• Conduct professional food demonstrations for internal teams and external customers.
• Maintain organized documentation of formulations and projects.
• Support sensory evaluations and shelf-life studies as needed.
• Attend production trials and first production runs to support projects.
• Collaborate cross-functionally to improve R&D knowledge and operational efficiency.
• Translate trends into consumer insights with sales, marketing and restaurant input.
• Lead/mentor junior team members and ensure SQF standards in lab and production.

Skills

Culinary expertise

Product development

Food science

Project management

Cross-functional teamwork

Bi-lingual English/Spanish

Education

Culinary degree

BS in Food Science

Tools

Excel

Word

Office

Genesis

Job description

Veggies Made Great is seeking a Research Chef to lead culinary-driven product development within our R&D team. You will blend culinary creativity with food science, ensure regulatory compliance, and translate trends into consumer-focused products.

You will manage multiple projects, collaborate with Marketing, QA and Operations, and mentor junior staff. Travel for plant trials and industry events is expected, with a strong emphasis on quality and speed to market.