Position at Pilgrim's Food Scientist Product Development Purpose and Scope/General Summary: This position places you within the largest global poultry company. This role is based out of our US Headquarters, which is located in beautiful Northern Colorado, with quick access to national parks, hiking trails, ski slopes and numerous outdoor activities. Through our values and culture, here at JBS & Pilgrims we are dedicated to feeding the world and being the best in all we do. As a Food Scientist, you will be responsible for the development of new products and improvement of existing products. You will work closely with Operations, Operational Excellent (OE), Research and Optimization (R&O), Quality Assurance (QA), Category Marketing, Innovation, Culinary, Regulatory, Procurement, and Sales teams to drive execution of the Fresh and Prepared Poultry strategies by developing, optimizing, and commercializing products. This role will be focused on product development supporting customers product needs. Responsibilities:
- Execute development of new products and improvement of existing products to meet customer, brand, and operations requirements as related to cost, quality, and yield.
- Perform pilot product development and renovation up to and through commercialization, analyzing results and making recommendations for full-scale implementation.
- Engage directly with vendors for benchtop, pilot line, and commercial scale requests, including troubleshooting product and process opportunities in formulation functionality and shelf-life.
- Engage with vendors in new strategic platform development, product improvement, and line extensions via technical briefs and discussions.
- Participate in product development conversations through product sampling, technical communication, and presentations as technical touchpoint to customers related to new product development, product improvement, and specification improvement of value-added products.
- Work closely with cross-functional teams to address quality or yield issues of individual product specifications and processes.
- Communicate technical development activities like design of experiment, costing, data analysis, etc. to cross-functional teams with simplicity.
- Collaborate with Operations, OE, R&O, Category Marketing, and QA teams on new product development and product/process renovation for quality and yield opportunities.
- Work cross-functionally with Marketing, Innovation, Sales, Culinary, Operations, QA, Regulatory, and Procurement teams in accordance to stage-gate process.
- Collaborate with sensory and R&O teams to validate sensory outcomes and shelf-life requirements.
- Prepare technical data collection plans and results reports independently.
- Ability to travel up to 50% of the time.
- Other duties as assigned
- Bachelors degree in Food Science required, Degree in Meat Science, Poultry Science, Engineering, or related field strongly preferred.
- BS & 3-5 years of relevant experience
- MS & 0-2 years of relevant experience
- Experience working in food manufacturing facility, operations, or continuous improvement strongly preferred.
- Strong interpersonal and communication skills.
- Well-versed in Project Management Systems and Recipe Development (e.g., SAP).
- Good understanding of USDA and/or FDA guidelines with occasional support from manager.
- Proficient in Microsoft Excel, Outlook, Word, PowerPoint, and Microsoft TEAMS / Cisco Webex.
- Can perform the functions of the job with or without a reasonable accommodation
- As a salaried position with the company, you may be required to travel at some point to other facilities, to attend Company events, or as a representative of the Company in other situations. Unless otherwise specified in this posting, the amount of travel may vary and the most qualified candidate must be willing and able to travel as business needs dictate.
- Benefits : Vision, Medical, and Dental coverage begin after 60 days of employment;
- Paid Time Off : sick leave, vacation, and 6 company observed holidays;
- 401(k) : company match begins after the first year of service and follows the company vesting schedule;
- Base salary range of $60,000 - $70,000 ;
- Incentive Pay: This position is eligible to participate in the Companys annual bonus plan, the amount of bonus varies and is subject to the standard terms and conditions of the incentive program; and
- Career Development: Our company is dedicated to supporting professional growth by offering continuous learning opportunities and a focus on career growth through various learning and development programs.
Job ID: 487740773
Originally Posted on: 8/1/2025