Senior Scientist - Extraction

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

Founded in 1954, Vibrant Ingredients is committed to providing innovative clean label solutions that naturally provide exceptional food protection, flavor, color and texture for a variety of applications, including processed and cured meat, beverages, plant-based alternatives, health and wellness, culinary, and pet nutrition. Vibrant Ingredients believes in improving the food and beverages we eat and drink with ingredients from nature that work. We are a trusted partner to our customers when it comes to innovation and an industry leader in clean label ingredients, we are a true partner. We collaborate with our customers in ways that respect people and the environment. A commitment to Real. Simple. Better™ drives our innovation team to discover new, on trend solutions.

About the role:

We are seeking a creative and technically accomplished Senior Scientist to help define the future of premium coffee and tea extraction. In this highly visible, hands-on role, you will apply deep expertise in tea and coffee chemistry, sensory performance, and process development to turn complex technical challenges into scalable ingredient solutions with distinctive flavor, aroma, and quality.

How will you contribute:

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

• Lead formulation and development of new coffee and tea extracts, concentrates, essences, and other value-added products.
• Conduct systematic technical assessment of existing processes. Redefine process parameters to balance extraction efficiency with preservation of desirable flavor and aroma characteristics.
• Design and execute benchtop and pilot extraction experiments to understand the relationship between raw material characteristics, extraction conditions, processing parameters, and finished product performance.
• Generate high-quality technical data and translate results into clear conclusions and recommendations.
• Work with sensory teams and/or conduct structured sensory evaluations to assess product and process performance.
• Stay current with emerging technologies, competitive products, processing methods, and industry trends related to tea and coffee ingredients.
• Manage and drive projects to a successful outcome.

Minimum Requirements/Qualifications:

• Bachelor's degree in Food Science, Chemistry, Chemical Engineering, or related field.
• 10 years of experience in the Food Industry with a proven track record of success in new product development, improving process performance, and product quality.
• Direct experience with coffee/tea/botanical extraction and processing is highly preferred.
• Deep knowledge of manufacturing processes, including extraction, filtration, drying.
• Experience and knowledge of a wide range of aqueous extraction and separation technologies including Spinning Cone column, cold brew coffee, filtration, evaporation, drying.
• Hands on experience working with different tea, coffee raw materials and knowledge of their sensory characteristics and extraction behavior.
• Excellent technical execution and project management skills
• Well-developed communication skills with the ability to communicate effectively throughout all levels of the organization.
• Ability to travel up to 25%
• May involve exposure to allergens such as Soy, Wheat, Fish, Shellfish, Milk, Egg, Tree Nuts and Sesame.

What Vibrant Ingredients can offer you:

• Generous time off for vacation
• Paid Holidays
• 401(k) with company match
• Health & Wellness programs

More about us:

Vibrant Ingredients, headquartered in Lake Mary, FL, is one of the world's leading independent providers of natural ingredients. With a legacy spanning over 70 years, we deliver a diverse portfolio of clean label ingredients and innovative system solutions to the food and beverage industry. Our commitment to quality and performance is reflected in our American-made products, which enhance both taste and functionality. Backed by advanced manufacturing capabilities, we specialize in fermentation, patented cold brew extraction, custom flavor development, and a range of drying and blending technologies. Operating from four state-of-the-art facilities strategically located across the U.S., we ensure the accessibility of real, high-quality ingredients—helping our customers create better-for-you food and beverage for consumers.

"Improving the food and beverages consumed by providing real ingredients from nature that work."

This position is currently classified as on-site either in Eustis, Florida, Indianapolis, IN or Vista, California.

Employees are eligible to participate in Medical, Dental, Vision, Life Insurance, 401(k), Holidays, Vacation, Tuition Reimbursement Program.

The final salary offered for this position may take into account a number of factors including, but not limited to, location, skills, education, and experience.

The Company reserves the right to modify, update, change and/or make corrections to this job description, at the sole discretion of senior management, at any time during the employee’s employment term, at the sole discretion of management.

EEO Statement

Vibrant Ingredients is an equal opportunity employer committed to employing a diverse workforce and providing accommodations for people with disabilities in all parts of the hiring process as required under its Employment Accommodation Policy. Vibrant Ingredients will work with applicants to meet accommodation needs that are made known to Vibrant Ingredients in advance.