Research & Development Senior Supervisor

About the role

The Research & Development Senior Supervisor leads new product development, product improvement, and cost optimisation initiatives within a food manufacturing environment. You will coordinate cross‑functional teams to bring concepts to market while ensuring quality, safety and regulatory compliance.

Key responsibilities

• Manage new product development projects from concept through commercialisation.
• Conduct product reformulation, cost‑optimisation and value‑engineering studies.
• Plan, execute and monitor laboratory, pilot‑scale and production trials.
• Develop and maintain formulations, specifications and technical documentation.
• Evaluate and approve new raw materials for product improvement.
• Perform sensory evaluations and analyse test results.
• Investigate product quality issues and provide technical recommendations.
• Collaborate with Production, QA, Purchasing, Marketing and Supply Chain to ensure successful launches.
• Track market trends, competitor products and emerging food technologies.
• Ensure compliance with food safety, regulatory and customer requirements.
• Prepare development reports, presentations and project updates for management.

Required profile

• Bachelor’s degree in Food Technology, Food Science, Food Engineering, Industrial Chemistry or related field.
• 3‑5 years of experience in food manufacturing R&D.
• Proven ability to manage multiple projects under tight timelines.
• Willingness to travel occasionally to manufacturing sites, suppliers and markets.
• Comfortable working in both office and factory environments, including standing during trials.

Required skills

• New Product Development (NPD)
• Food formulation and process development
• Sensory evaluation techniques
• Food safety and quality systems (HACCP, GMP, ISO 22000)
• Cost optimisation and value engineering
• Data analysis and report preparation
• Microsoft Office (Excel, PowerPoint, Word)