Florida Crystals / ASR Group
Product Developer
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The ASR Group® family of companies make up the world’s largest refiner and marketer of cane sugar. The companies produce a full line of grocery, industrial, foodservice and specialty sweetener products. Across North America, ASR Group® companies operate five sugar refineries, located in California, Maryland, Louisiana, Canada and Mexico. In Europe, ASR Group® companies operate sugar refineries in the United Kingdom, Portugal, and, with a joint venture partner, Italy. The companies also farm sugarcane and own sugar mills in Mexico and Belize. The ASR Group® portfolio includes the leading brands Domino®, C&H®, Florida Crystals®, Redpath®, Tate & Lyle®, Lyle's®, Sidul® and Whitworths®. ASR Group® companies also produce and market Tellus®, a single-use, compostable tableware and foodservice product made from plant fibers, including sugarcane.
Job Title
Product Developer II
Location
Thames Refinery, UK
Reports To
Product Manager
COMPANY DESCRIPTION
ASR Group is the world’s largest refiner and marketer of cane sugar, with an annual production capacity of more than 6 million tons of sugar. The company produces a full line of grocery, industrial, food service and specialty sweetener products. Across North America, ASR Group owns and operates six sugar refineries, located in Louisiana, New York, California, Maryland, Canada and Mexico. In Europe, the company owns and operates sugar refineries in England and Portugal. ASR Group also owns and operates mills in Mexico and Belize. The company’s brand portfolio includes the leading brands Domino®, C&H®, Redpath®, Tate & Lyle®, Lyle’s® and Sidul®.
OVERVIEW
As a member of the Research & Technology team, the Research Scientist is responsible for delivering product development, formulation, and sensory evaluation activities to support new product development, optimisation, and customer-driven projects across European sites, with occasional involvement in global initiatives. Working within the Global Research and Technology department and European cross-functional teams, this role is hands-on and customer-oriented, working closely with Marketing to translate briefs into technical solutions, with ingredient and flavour suppliers to develop fit-for-purpose formulations, with Finance to assess and optimise formulation costs, and with Quality and Operations to ensure product scalability, manufacturing standards and food safety compliance.
DETAILED ROLES & RESPONSIBILITIES
Product Development, Formulation & Sensory
- Effectively manage time, priorities, and resources to deliver multiple development projects, laboratory activities, and internal/external customer requests to meet agreed timelines
- Responsible laboratory-based product development and formulation activities across sugar, syrups, sweeteners, flavoured syrups and beverage, coffee syrups and dessert sauces
- Develop, optimise, and reformulate products in line with customer requirements, Marketing briefs, manufacturing capability, and cost targets
- Design, prepare, and evaluate bench-scale samples, supporting internal reviews and external customer assessments
- Plan, conduct, and interpret organoleptic assessments and sensory evaluations, translating results into development recommendations
- Provide technical flavour and application recommendations to support product performance and business growth
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Customer, Commercial & Cross-Functional Collaboration
- Work closely with Marketing to translate customer and market briefs into structured technical development plans
- Support customer engagement sessions, supporting Marketing and Sales with development briefs and product sample showcases
- Support customer-facing technical discussions, including product tastings, technical briefings, and sample reviews
- Engage with ingredient and flavour suppliers to evaluate materials, identify innovation opportunities, and resolve technical challenges
- Partner with Finance to calculate, review and optimise formulation costs to support commercial decision-making
- Collaborate with Quality and Operations to ensure formulations meet food safety, regulatory, and manufacturing requirements
Scale-up, Product Stability & Technical Support
- Support manufacturing trials, including technical documentation preparation, participation in trials, data capture, sample testing and reporting of outcomes
- Plan and execute real-time and accelerated shelf-life and stability studies, analysing results and making technical recommendations
- Provide technical support to manufacturing sites, including investigation of customer complaints and troubleshooting product-related issues as required
- Generate technical documentation, including formulation records, trial reports, sensory summaries, and development recommendations to support audits and technical governance
Laboratory Practice
- Work in full compliance with Good Laboratory Practice, GMP, food safety, and Health & Safety requirements
- Support routine laboratory activities, and maintain a clean and organised laboratory, adhering to housekeeping and hygiene standards.
- Manage laboratory ingredients, samples, equipment and records to ensure traceability and data integrity.
- Actively contribute to continuous improvement initiatives and implementation of digital tools, data analytics, and AI-enabled approaches to support product development, predictive modelling, formulation optimisation, and trend analysis
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WORK EXPERIENCE
- Experienced in product development, formulation, and sensory evaluation within a food and beverage industry
- Experience working with sugars, sweeteners, beverages, flavoured syrups, dessert sauces, and coffee syrups or equivalent
- Strong capability in product formulation, organoleptic assessment and sensory evaluation, with the ability to translate sensory findings into development actions
- Hands-on laboratory experience (sample preparation, sensory panels, stability testing and accurate data recordings) with adherence to laboratory working standards and good housekeeping practices
- Demonstrated ability to manage time, priorities, and resources effectively, balancing multiple development projects, laboratory activities, and customer requests to meet agreed timelines.
- Proven experience working closely with Marketing and cross-functional teams (including Quality, Operations, Finance, and Procurement) to translate customer and market briefs into technical development plans and manufacturing solutions.
- Strong communication skills, customer-orientated mindset and confidence working in customer-facing technical roles
- Good understanding of HACCP principles, food manufacturing, quality systems, and regulatory requirements, with the ability to support the development and implementation of process control and food safety documentation.
- Excellent computer literacy, including proficiency in MS Office Suite and familiarity with digital tools for data analysis, reporting, and project management
EDUCATION & CERTIFICATION
- Minimum B.Sc. in Food Science, Chemistry or related scientific discipline
- Professional certifications in Health and Safety, Food Safety, HACCP, or Quality Management Systems are preferred
- Experience with Genesis, Compusense Sensory, Ilabber, SAP PLM and MDG, or similar softwares is preferred
- Training or certification in Project Management (e.g., PMP, PRINCE2) and Continuous Improvement methodologies (e.g., Lean, Six Sigma) is advantageous
At Tate & Lyle Sugars, our goal is to be the most admired sweetener Company.
- Service Excellence - Be the industry's Gold Standard by a relentless focus on reliability, providing products with superior quality and excellent customer services.
- Efficiency and Sustainability - Eliminate inefficiency to be a sustainable, low cost producer and to generate fuel for reinvestment.
- Value-Add - Create strategic advantage and enhanced profitability through value-added products and services. The foundation of our values is Talent and Culture as we aim to build, retain and motivate a winning team.
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