Innovative Food & Beverage Product Developer (Hybrid)

Placements24; East London; Hybrid; ZAR 600,000 - 900,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Hybrid work

Career development

Competitive salary

Medical aid

Retirement contributions

Job summary

Placements24 in East London, Eastern Cape is seeking a Product Development Technologist to drive ideation through commercialization of new food and beverage products. The role requires a strong food science background and a passion for market-driven innovation.

You will collaborate with marketing, operations, and QA to ensure safety, regulatory compliance, and high-quality outputs while scaling formulations from lab to production in a hybrid East London setting.

Qualifications

• Bachelor’s or Master’s degree in Food Science, Food Technology, Chemistry, or related discipline.
• Minimum of 5 years of product development experience in FMCG food/bev.
• Strong understanding of food chemistry, microbiology, and processing techniques.
• Experience with product formulation, sensory evaluation, and scale‑up.
• Proficiency with laboratory equipment and analytical instruments.

Responsibilities

• Conceptualize, develop, and optimize new food and beverage product formulations.
• Conduct lab-scale and pilot-plant trials to test prototypes.
• Collaborate with marketing to translate consumer needs into concepts.
• Work with QA to meet safety and regulatory standards.
• Scale‑up formulations from lab to production and troubleshoot.

Skills

Food chemistry

Sensory evaluation

Scale‑up processes

Product formulation

Communication

Regulatory knowledge (SA)

Project management

Cross‑functional collaboration

Education

Bachelor’s or Master’s in Food Science

Tools

Lab instruments

Job description

Placements24 in East London, Eastern Cape is seeking a Product Development Technologist to drive ideation through commercialization of new food and beverage products. The role requires a strong food science background and a passion for market-driven innovation.

You will collaborate with marketing, operations, and QA to ensure safety, regulatory compliance, and high-quality outputs while scaling formulations from lab to production in a hybrid East London setting.