Product Development Technologist Jobs

Trophy Foods is Canada's leading supplier of high-quality edible nuts, dried fruit and confectionery products. We pride ourselves on providing the highest quality products, at the best value, through our direct channel of global grower relationships.

Trophy Foods Inc. is Canadian owned and operated with over 40 years of experience in serving our customers. We produce edible nuts, dried fruits, confectionery and bulk foods under our Trophy brand. We also work with grocery retailers, mass merchandisers, drug channel, and food service customers across the country to create and produce a wide variety of private label branded products.

Overview: The Product Development Technologist will participate in the development of proprietary food products, as well as coordinate and lead plant trials. Working under the guidance of the Product Development Manager, the incumbent will work with customer recipes and requests to create unique products, generate samples using a controlled and well-documented development process. Other areas of focus will include understanding regulatory requirements, ingredient evaluations and testing, supplier communication, nutrition analyses, and specification development.

Key responsibilities include, but are not limited to:

• Formulate new and existing products to meet objectives for sensory and nutritional attributes, quality, cost, timeline and manufacturer ability.
• Participate in team projects and work collaboratively with others.
• Support our Regulatory Affairs Specialist when required.
• Lead plant trials, develop manufacturing procedures, monitor initial production and finalize product implementation.
• Maintain detailed, comprehensive records of formulations, process parameters, finished product results, sensory evaluation, and next steps.
• Set up consumer testing panels and analyze and report data from the testing and plant trials.
• Monitor competitor product development activities and food industry technology trends and developments.
• Hands on approach on product testing, evaluation, and sample preparation.

Experience, Qualifications, and Educational Requirements:

• Effective organizer – can handle several projects at the same time and can take products from conception to saleable product.
• Must possess strong computer skills, including working knowledge of Microsoft Office.
• A pulse on current food trends in the marketplace.
• Proactive self-starter with a strong sense of urgency, who also works well within a team environment.
• Creativity and passion for food and new product development.
• Knowledge of food product manufacturing, packaging, storage, and distribution.
• Bachelor’s degree in food science or food technology or higher.
• Effective communicator – able to listen effectively.
• Ability to work well in a fast-paced environment, and to multi-task, concentrate and work within tight deadlines.
• 3 to 5 years of product development or research and development experience.
• Customer and stakeholder focused – proactively keeps customers and teams informed with strong follow up.

Accountabilities for Success:

• Identify causes of problems and develop solutions to make effective, timely decisions.
• Take initiative to understand and produce results aligned to department priorities, and accept responsibility for performance and results.
• Collaborate and partner with others through actively building positive and productive relationships, working to understand different viewpoints, and treating people of varying backgrounds and perspectives fairly.
• Communicate ideas and information in an effective manner by listening, demonstrating understanding, readily sharing information, and keeping appropriate parties up to date.
• Demonstrate a commitment to Trophy’s vision and mission. Understand how individual decisions and actions impact the needs of the department as well as overall corporate goals.

Work Environment:

• Frequent periods of intense concentration and must respond to all types of deadlines, special requests, and emergencies.
• While performing the duties of this Job, the employee is regularly required to walk through the Plant and office areas. The office work environment is open, provides adequate lighting, is temperature controlled and relatively quiet. In the Plant environment the employee is occasionally exposed to wet and/or humid conditions and moving mechanical parts. The noise level is usually loud.
• Overtime as required.
• Sitting at a desk and terminal for extended periods of time each day (4 to 7 hours). Occasionally required to move around the office.