R&D Kitchen Assistant
This is an exciting role at Jordans Dorset Ryvita where our mission is to ‘inspire better wellbeing by creating delicious foods from nature’.
What’s it all about?
The JDR R&D vision states we will beat the competition by being the first to bring international new trends and ingredients to market delivering on taste, health, and quality. We will be relentless in delighting the consumer, leading to commercial success and we will be a highly skilled experienced team, that are the best at crafting and developing delicious mueslis, granolas, biscuits and snacks.
The purpose of the role is to be part of the wider Product Development team focusing on delivering the business agenda for all our products across all JDR brands in the UK and international markets.
Our R&D vision is to
- Focus on delivering the core business agenda
- Deliver the future innovation agenda for our core products
- Direct ownership of our product quality
- Management of our product costs
- Focus on driving our health and sustainability agenda via trends and ingredients knowledge
- Structured focus on our key international markets
The job holder will:
- Be responsible for key ‘business as usual’ tasks involved in running a successful R&D team (kitchen sample creation, managing the R&D kitchen, supporting with systems and admin tasks).
People
- Working closely with all R&D functions (Core Product Development, Innovation, Packaging, Compliance).
- Collaboration with the project management, marketing, technical, procurement and operational teams.
Key Accountabilities
Sample creation (60%)
- To create kitchen samples for Product Development projects in accordance with the NPD procedure.
- Make samples for external consumer research, internal research and brand sessions.
- Create samples for innovation pipeline projects.
Managing the R&D kitchen (25%)
- Manage the R&D kitchen to ensure that it always runs effectively.
- Ensure the kitchen is maintained in a clean and tidy manner in accordance with procedures.
- Order, collect and sort ingredients from our sites to ensure that the R&D kitchen is stocked up.
- Manage the cleaning rota for the R&D kitchen.
- Facilitate internal sensory testing sessions.
- Manage trial stock – labelling samples on arrival and scrapping samples at end of shelf life.
- Label samples for shelf-life testing.
- Packing and arranging samples to be sent out externally.
- Support the Product Development team with general tasks including pick outs, taking photos, bulk densities, sievings and cooking validations.
- Follow all Quality systems and procedures to ensure our products meet food safety (HACCP), legal and customer requirements as well as maintaining external standards eg BRC, IFS, Femas.
- Work across the Product Development team to support the workload and any ad hoc tasks.
Systems & Admin (15%)
- Data entry for systems.
- Book in samples for nutritional testing and file certificates.
- Input nutritional results into Excel and share with the relevant Product Development project lead.
- Raise purchase orders for the Product Development team.
- Support on shelf life when required.
What does "great" look like?
Great Judgement
- Puts the consumer at the heart of the decision
- Works together as one
- Understanding of quality and safety requirements/systems
- Analytical skills for statistical analysis of sensory data
- Great prioritisation skills and works well independently
- Raising risks and errors in a timely manner with potential solutions
People Focused
- Strong team player
- Excellent communication and listening skills
- Interacts fluidly with commercial, technical and operational stakeholders of all levels, adapting style & message accordingly
- Strong interpersonal skills
Action Orientated
- Ability to work effectively and collaboratively in a busy, fast paced flat structure
- Good initiative and ability to think on your feet
- Proactive and uses own initiative
- Organised and great time management
Experience and Skills
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At Jordans Dorset Ryvita, our brands have great credentials in environmental sustainability and working with farmers to protect the countryside. Our brands are naturally delicious and sold internationally worldwide. We’re also a friendly bunch who support each other to do the very best we can and make JDR a great place to work.
Jordans Dorset Ryvita is part of Associated British Foods (ABF), a diversified international food, ingredients and retail group, employing 128,000 employees worldwide.