NPD Technologist

|Food & Dairy - Food & Packaging Technology|New Zealand

The Company: Whittaker’s is New Zealand’s biggest chocolate manufacturer and has won New Zealand’s ‘Most Trusted Brand’ 14 times in a row. They live by the belief that ‘best is always better’, insisting on using only the finest ingredients, the best methods, most precise machinery, and the best people to keep making good honest chocolate.

The Role: This is a hands-on role assisting the delivery of new and improved Whittaker’s products alongside a close-knit New Product Development team. Reporting to the NPD Manager, you’ll support the product development process from concept through to launch. Working to defined briefs, you’ll assist with lab operations, formulation of recipes, sourcing and selecting ingredients, manufacturing trials, championing quality standards, maintaining accurate Bill of Materials (BOM) and much more.

Tasks will include, but are not limited to:

  • Supporting new and improved products through the NPD pipelines, from formulation and lab trials to scale-up and launch.
  • Managing daily lab work, sample preparation, testing and trial analysis
  • Assisting with process development, optimisation, efficiency and cost reduction initiatives
  • Sourcing and selecting ingredients, maintaining strong relationships with suppliers
  • Creating and maintaining accurate technical documentation including recipes, BOMs, nutrition and labelling information
  • Recording, analysing and presenting trial data to the NPD team
  • Ensuring quality, food safety and compliance requirements are met throughout development and post launch
  • Liaising closely with cross functional teams to support trials and troubleshoot issues

This will be an on-site role, working 8.00am to 4.30pm Monday to Friday, with some flexibility required to be available for trials conducted outside of production schedules.

You, the Candidate: Whether you are a recent graduate with some strong internship experience in product development, or an established technologist looking for their next challenge, we would love to hear from you!

The ideal candidate will bring the following skills and attributes:

  • A degree in Food Technology, Food Science or a related discipline
  • Foundational knowledge of the product development process
  • Knowledge of food legislation, HACCP, and allergen management
  • Basic understanding of food nutritional calculations
  • High attention to detail & strong documentation and data analysis skills
  • High level of initiative and self-motivation

Apply: To apply for this role, please select the relevant ‘Apply’ button. Alternatively, please contact Maya Carpenter-Salvador on maya@trs.co.nz with a copy of your CV. To be eligible for this role, you must hold current working rights in NZ. You must also be willing to undertake and return a satisfactory Ministry of Justice Criminal History check and undergo a pre-employment medical including a Drug & Alcohol Screening.