Senior Food Scientist

About Us
Voyage Foods is realizing the dreams of tomorrow by reimagining the foods of today.

It’s no secret that the global food system faces monumental challenges ranging from health, humanitarian, and sustainability issues. Our goal at Voyage is to challenge the status quo and provide solutions for a growing world. By harnessing the full potential of nature and technology, we are able to molecularly reverse engineer the world’s most cherished foods, allowing people to eat what they love with no compromises.

Our work resides in the intersection of art and science. Voyage’s understanding of food architecture (through the use of analytical chemistry, sensory and flavor science, data, and process chemistry) allows us to solve big issues in food to design healthy and pleasurable foods for all.

We are a small flat team of smart and intrepid food dorks who just raised $5.8 million in funding from top VC funds including Valor Siren Ventures and Horizons Ventures. We value intellectual curiosity, humility, and a sense of urgency. We are driven by the desire to solve big problems, challenge conventional thinking, and embrace a culture of risk taking by trial and error. If you identify with these values, we’d love to chat with you!

Job Description

We are looking for a senior food scientist to join our R&D team, reporting to the Director of R&D. They will help our PD team lead prototype formulations and commercialization for many food and beverage types with limited supervision. They will also assist with preparation of sensory samples, help with compound dilutions and blending for production. As we are a small start-up team, responsibilities can vary daily, and will also include general lab operations.

Job Responsibilities & What You’ll Need to Succeed
Work in concert with the Director of R&D on managing technical timelines for new products and research projects
Develop new product prototypes & formulation with commercialization in mind
Ability to take product development guidelines, identify and propose potential ingredients for base development, and prototype quickly
Strong technical acumen in ingredient technologies and application
Manage and lead multiple technically complex projects: create technical plans, risk management, and mitigation plans from concept to commercialization
Display scientific diligence, analysis, and evaluation for product development approaches, inclusive of bench prototyping and sensory testing
Ability to create D.O.E. and work with an analytical team to generate meaningful data for Product Development
Strong expertise in product stability & processing effects on product quality
Well rounded development experience with beverage and solid food formulations
Conducting experiments relevant to explore flavor generation pathways and applying findings in Product Development
Prepare small and medium scale formulation batches of various food and beverage products
Coach and develop R&D team members on technical matters and project execution
Conduct product quality tests including shelf life and product stability studies
SOP creation for general lab operations & product scale-up
Preparation of compound stocks and dilutions as needed
Preparation of compound blends for production as needed
Execute sensory test design and experiment
Safely handle and prepare large volumes of laboratory chemicals
Document all experimental procedures in a laboratory or digital notebook

Requirements
Minimum of 6 years of product development experience in food industry
Degree in Food Science, Chemistry, Biochemistry, Biology or a related field
Knowledge of solution preparation, chemical handling, and use of lab equipments are essential

Please apply to this position if you have a highly analytical and creative mind, pay great attention to detail, and find a start-up environment appealing. Please include your resume and a cover letter in your application.

Must be authorized to work in the USA.

About You
You’re highly-motivated and experienced enough to hit the ground running from day one. You're inquisitive. You understand which questions to ask, and how to apply sufficient scientific rigor to answer them. You aren’t afraid to articulate ideas and you aren’t afraid to be wrong. A startup work environment appeals to you. You’re able to laugh at yourself.

Why Us?
In a city full of companies that sell prospective hires on happy hours and ping pong tables, here’s what we are uniquely able to offer:

A small but growing flat organization
Autonomy and agency
An intimate look at the inner workings of early stage startups
A team that values EQ as much as IQ
A team that values hard work, but believes in the importance of self-care and taking meaningful breaks
An environment that encourages empathetic debate. We state cases, defend positions, argue productively, and make decisions together. We don’t have any issues with being wrong. People’s opinions are actively sought out and valued
An environment where we not only acknowledge the hard work and successes of our teammates, but also celebrate them

Contact Information
Interested parties may send their resume alongside with a cover letter to [email protected]