Product Development Scientist

About the Role

The Product Development Scientist is responsible for the formulation, application testing, and customer-facing technical support of emulsified sauces, including aiolis, fluid icings, and glazes. This role bridges formulation science with real-world manufacturing and customer applications, ensuring products meet functional, sensory, safety, and shelf-stability requirements while supporting customer customization and commercialization.

The ideal candidate is knowledgeable in raw material selection, has a strong understanding of ingredient functionality and interactions, has commercial experience is cold blended sauce related fields, and has the ability to translate technical concepts into practical customer solutions.

Key Responsibilities

Product Formulation & Development

• Develop and optimize formulas for aiolis, cold-blended emulsified sauces, fluid icings, and glazes.
• Apply knowledge of emulsion systems, viscosity control, texture, flavor delivery, and appearance.
• Select and optimize ingredients based on functionality, cost, labeling, and processing constraints.
• Understand and manage ingredient interactions impacting stability, flavor, texture, and shelf-life.

Application Testing & Validation

• Conduct bench-top, pilot-scale, and application testing to validate formula performance.
• Troubleshoot formulation and processing issues related to shear, temperature, pH, and processing variability.

Customer Collaboration & Technical Support

• Present product applications and formulations to customers, sales teams, and cross-functional partners.
• Work directly with customers to customize formulations based on application needs, sensory targets, labeling requirements, and processing conditions.
• Translate customer feedback into actionable formulation adjustments and technical recommendations.

Manufacturing & Food Safety

• Demonstrate working knowledge of food manufacturing equipment, including mixers, emulsifiers, pumps, and fillers.
• Apply Good Manufacturing Practices (GMPs) in lab, pilot, and production environments.
• Support scale-up from lab to production while maintaining product integrity and consistency.

Shelf Stability & Quality Awareness

• Understand basic microbiological principles related to shelf stability, including water activity, pH, preservatives, and process controls.
• Participate in or support shelf-life and stability studies, including sensory and visual evaluations.
• Collaborate with Quality and Food Safety teams to ensure formulations meet internal and customer standards.

Qualifications

Required Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree in Food Science, Food Engineering, or a related discipline
• Experience formulating emulsified sauces, icings, glazes, or similar fluid food systems
• Strong understanding of ingredient functionality and interactions
• Familiarity with GMPs and food manufacturing environments
• Hands-on experience with food production equipment
• Ability to communicate technical concepts clearly to customers and non-technical stakeholders

Preferred Qualifications

• Experience in customer-facing product development or applications roles
• Exposure to shelf-stable or refrigerated emulsions from a microbiological perspective
• Experience supporting scale-up and commercialization in a manufacturing setting

Skills & Abilities

• Formulation problem-solving and critical thinking
• Technical curiosity and independent thinking
• Strong organizational and documentation skills
• Collaborative mindset with Sales, Quality, and Operations teams
• Ability to balance innovation, speed-to-market, and manufacturability

About Rubix Foods

Rubix Foods is a full-service product development house with end- to-end manufacturing capabilities. We blend culinary creativity, food science, and consumer intelligence to fuel innovation for the industry’s most exciting, high-momentum brands. From concept to  commercialization, we streamline and accelerate the entire product development journey – delivering white-glove service, disciplined execution, and consistent results that raise the bar every time.

Our Vision: To be the food industry’s first call – known for our speed, trusted for our quality, and chosen for our reliability.

Our Mission: To solve the food industry’s toughest problems – creatively, collaboratively, and with unrivaled speed and execution.