Group Culinary R&D Manager at Promasidor

About the job

• The Group Culinary Manager leverages expertise in cuisine, consumer cooking habits, and food science to drive innovation in product development.
• This role involves creating and refining recipes, translating them into scalable formulations within cost targets, and collaborating with marketing, technical, and quality assurance teams.
• Additionally, the chef supports recipe standardization for wet sampling and assists in organizing cooking demonstrations.

Responsibilities
Product Development & Industrialization:

• Develop new culinary products in line with marketing brief, ensuring they align with consumer preferences and market trends.
• Transform kitchen recipes into industrially scalable formulations while maintaining taste, texture, quality integrity and cost target.
• Work with technical teams to ensure recipes are aligned with production capabilities and cost objectives.
• Collaborate with CMI to conduct regularly preference test to ensure our product remain competitive
• Ensure adherence to food safety, lcoal regulatory, and quality standards in all recipe formulations.

Collaboration & Cross-Functional Support:

• Work closely with flavor houses to co-develop customized flavors and ingredients.
• Partner with R&D, supply chain, and production teams to source quality ingredients and optimize costs.
• Collaborate with marketing to provide culinary expertise in branding, positioning, and storytelling for new products.
• Conduct competitive benchmarking (regular tasting session) to identify gaps and opportunities in the market.

Marketing & Consumer Engagement:

• Develop and document standardized recipes for consumer test.
• Ensure consistency in product formulation by refining and validating ingredient specifications.
• Organize and oversee wet sampling sessions for internal stakeholders, ensuring accurate sensory evaluation.
• Support marketing team in driving cooking demonstrations showcasing product applications.
• Support promotional activities, trade shows, and customer engagement events with live product presentations.

Continuous Improvement & Innovation:

• Stay updated with global food trends, innovations, and technological advancements in the food industry.
• Experiment with new cooking techniques, ingredient combinations, and flavor profiles to drive differentiation.
• Work with sensory evaluation panels to refine products based on consumer feedback

Requirements
Education:

• HND / B.Sc Degree in Culinary degree or equivalent professional culinary experience.
• Strong knowledge of food science, ingredients, and culinary techniques.

Experience:

• Minimum of 15 years of experience in culinary research and product development.

Key Competencies:

• Excellent palate and sensory evaluation skills.
• Ability to manage multiple projects and meet deadlines.
• Strong communication, organizational, and collaboration skills.
• Proficiency in documenting recipes and maintaining accurate records.
• Knowledge of food safety regulations and industry standards.