Senior Scientist, Coffee & Tea Extraction & Flavor

Vibrant Ingredients; Indianapolis (IN); On-site; USD 120,000 - 180,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Vacation time

Holidays

401(k) with company match

Health & Wellness programs

Job summary

Vibrant Ingredients seeks a Senior Scientist to lead the development of premium coffee and tea extracts, concentrates and essences. You will apply deep tea and coffee chemistry, sensory performance, and process development to deliver flavorful, aroma-accurate ingredients.

The role requires a Bachelor's degree in a related field and 10 years in the food industry, with direct extraction experience, strong project management, and travel up to 25%. On-site in Indianapolis, IN or other U.S. locations.

Qualifications

• Bachelor's degree in Food Science, Chemistry, Chemical Engineering, or related field.
• 10 years of experience in the Food Industry with success in new product development and process improvement.
• Direct experience with coffee/tea extraction and processing preferred.
• Excellent project management and communication skills; willing to travel up to 25%.

Responsibilities

• Lead formulation and development of coffee and tea extracts, concentrates and essences.
• Assess and optimize extraction processes to balance flavor and aroma.
• Design benchtop and pilot extraction experiments to link materials to performance.
• Generate technical data and present clear conclusions.
• Collaborate with sensory teams to evaluate product quality.
• Stay current with tea and coffee tech and industry trends.
• Drive projects to successful outcomes.

Skills

Coffee/tea extraction

Process development

Project management

Technical writing

Communication

Travel up to 25%

Education

Bachelor's degree in Food Science, Chemistry, Chemical Engineering, or related field

Tools

Spinning Cone column

Filtration

Evaporation

Drying

Sensory coordination

Job description

Vibrant Ingredients seeks a Senior Scientist to lead the development of premium coffee and tea extracts, concentrates and essences. You will apply deep tea and coffee chemistry, sensory performance, and process development to deliver flavorful, aroma-accurate ingredients.

The role requires a Bachelor's degree in a related field and 10 years in the food industry, with direct extraction experience, strong project management, and travel up to 25%. On-site in Indianapolis, IN or other U.S. locations.