Job Purpose and Impact

The R&D Specialist, will coordinate, align and innovate through development and implementation of new and existing products. In this role, you will assist other scientists by providing technical guidance to new product development for product line growth and the creation of new capabilities and technical solutions to meet business goals.

Key Accountabilities

• Stay current with literature and analytical advancements.
• Apply market data to take advantage of opportunities and minimize adverse trends.
• Develop documentation and intellectual property protection formula and processes.
• Provide input and technical guidance on products, process development and improvement, quality systems and regulatory oversight.
• Partner with cross functional teams that include marketing, insights, sales, ops, product safety quality and regulatory.
• Collaborate with insights, research and commercial brand on short and long term testing programs for experimental and commercial products and hybrids.
• Work with sales, business management and marketing partners to assist in identifying customer needs and translate these into new food product development opportunities.
• Handle basic issues and problems under direct supervision, while escalating more complex issues to appropriate staff.
• Other duties as assigned

Qualifications

Minimum Qualifications

• Bachelor's degree in a related field or equivalent experience
• R&D experience in Food industry is necessary
• Native-level or fluent Japanese communication skills required for business use.

Preferred Qualifications

• Preferred Qualifications

・Foundational understanding of product development, analytical testing, and marketing strategy

・Experience working in a manufacturing environment

・Basic knowledge of finance and general business principles

・Experience in operations-related roles

・Product management experience

・Experience in food formulation and product commercialization

・Knowledge of food ingredients and their functional properties

・Research and development experience

・Strong familiarity with food products and the ability to adapt flexibly to changes in critical business systems