R&D Technician

Job Description

Job Description

WAWONA FROZEN FOODS

ABOUT THIS COMPANY

We pride ourselves on being family-owned and operated and treating our employees like family. Working at a company where safety and quality are top priorities. Every day, Wawona Frozen Foods' commitment to excellence justifies its reputation for delivering superior quality, value, and service. Wawona's state-of-the-art production methods and facilities ensure consistent high-quality products while maintaining the highest food safety standards as required by the USDA and state regulators.

ABOUT THIS ROLE

Assist and support R&D manager in the development of new products, management of plant trials, and supporting sales, QA and supply chain by assessing and establishing technical product information. This internship is designed to provide hands-on experience in food product development, testing, and analysis, while supporting various functions including sales, QA, and supply chain.

ESSENTIAL FUNCTIONS

• Must be familiar and comply with all employee safety, food safety, FDA, and USDA regulations to ensure that product meets the highest and safest standards for our customers
• Perform and document cooking and freezing validations as assigned, to develop processing, shelf life and microbial parameters.
• Responsible for all stages of product development projects including creating benchtop trials, requesting new R & D item numbers, planning plant scale tests, development of the full-scale procedures, and supervising and support during first production run.
• Develop and/or maintain timelines for all R & D projects to ensure that the development process is recorded and kept on track and completed in a timely manner.
• Develop reverse engineer product projects to ensure that Wawona keeps up to date with customer demands, cost effective production and product market share.
• Perform and document all required analytical testing to ensure that all trials meet quality, food safety, and sensory requirements.
• Compile and analyze data from test results to keep clear records with the expectation of communicating the necessary information to the project team, including internal and external customers.
• Must follow standardized formulas or develop experimental procedures as needed to ensure that all products are properly developed according to GMP's, Food Safety & Quality standards, and internal and external customer expectations.
• Develop and conduct group sensory testing to collect data and meet internal and external customer expectations.
• Maintain adequate inventory and manage all R & D stock items and tools to ensure availability and ability to conduct testing as scheduled.
• Appropriately plan and request sample items from production, warehouse, or any other sources, in adequate time to prepare for upcoming R & D testing.
• Responsible for organizing, maintaining, and cleaning of R & D refrigerators, freezers, or storage spaces, including disposing of items to maintain a clear and accurate inventory.
• Work with Quality to understand fruit grading to ensure that all samples, tests, and tastings use appropriate fruit for internal and external customer expectations.
• Responsible for the preparation and/or presentation of fruit samples or tasting events as requested by internal and external customers.
• Required to develop product nutritional information using the ESHA Genesis software to ensure that product meets the FDA and customer requirements for labeling.
• Use testing data or customer information to develop product specifications for production and quality to follow during product inspections and run checks.
• Responsible for creating product recipes in Nutritional Software Programs
• and communicating them to the planning department so that they can create Bill of Materials for each production run.
• Other duties as assigned by the leadership team.

Duties, responsibilities, and activities may change at any time with or without notice.

REQUIREMENTS

• A bachelor's degree in Food Science, Chemistry, or a similar discipline.
• 1-2 years of experience in food product R & D.
• Basic mathematical skills
• Ability to work under time pressures
• Open to a flexible schedule determined by product and customer demand
• Ability and willingness to learn and grow
• Ability to read and comprehend simple instructions, short correspondence, and memos.
• Ability to write simple correspondence in English.
• Able to work independently with little or no supervision

LOCATION & SHIFT INFO

• This position will work out of our Clovis Corporate Office Location

BENEFITS

• Wawona Wednesday's, End of Season Appreciation Events, T-shirts and Hats, Employee of the Month
• You'll have the opportunity to work with great people and make a real impact - while being your unique, authentic self at work.

WHY SHOULD YOU APPLY

• We learn together. We believe in supporting all employees with all the training, resources, and tools to be successful. We invest in our people, we learn together, we take the time to train, and we grow together. We celebrate OUR people and want each employee to have a long career with Wawona Frozen Foods.
• We focus on building and keeping relationships, going above and beyond, and offering world-class service. Empowering each team member to make Wawona Frozen Foods better every day, come up with improvements and suggest suggestions, and help us be innovative. We are proud of our history and want to continue to leave a legacy.
• Wawona Frozen Foods promotes a work environment that encourages problem-solving, collaboration, and a culture of growth. We roll up our sleeves, we get dirty, we exemplify true grit, and we support each other because we truly care about our people.
• We pride ourselves on having a diverse team matching our diverse product base. We have an inclusive culture where different professional and personal perspectives, ideas, and suggestions are respected and welcomed.
• We pride ourselves on the fast-paced environment that our season creates, and we recognize that if it was not for our people working hard that we would not be as successful.
• We strive to deliver the best fruit products available and to be a valued partner in every one of our customer's successes.
• We take the time to build a relationship with our customers and make sure we are producing and delivering the best products specific to your needs.

PHYSICAL AND/OR MENTAL DEMANDS

While performing the duties of this job, the employee is required to:

• Work in an environment where there can be medium to loud noise and cold temperatures in production areas.
• Frequent stand and walk, and use of hands, fingers, and arms to pull, reach, twist, and lift-ability to sit and use a computer for most of your day.
• Will spend most of the day seated using computers.
• Other duties as assigned require repetitive tasks, duties, or assignments.
• Work flexible/varying schedules to support the team and deadlines.
• Specific vision abilities required by this job include close vision, distance vision, color vision, peripheral vision, depth perception and ability to adjust focus.

ADDITIONAL INFORMATION

Applicants must be fully authorized to work in the U.S. and physically be in the U.S.

Wawona Frozen Foods is an equal opportunity employer and considers qualified applicants for employment without regard to race, gender, age, color, religion, disability, veteran status, sexual orientation, gender identity, or any other protected factor.

Reasonable accommodations may be made to enable individuals with disabilities to perform the essential functions.

NOTICE TO RECRUITERS, EMPLOYMENT AGENCIES, AND/OR VENDORS

Please note that Wawona Frozen Foods does not accept unsolicited resumes from recruiters, employment agencies, or vendors. Without a signed Recruitment Fee Agreement, Wawona Frozen Foods will not consider or agree to payment of any referral compensation or recruiter fee. If a recruiter or agency submits a resume or candidate without Wawona Frozen Foods' authorization, Wawona Frozen Foods is without any financial obligation to the recruiter or agency. Any unsolicited resumes, including those submitted to hiring managers, are deemed to be the property of Wawona Frozen Foods. Verbal commitments from any Wawona Frozen Food employees will not be considered binding terms. This applies to all Wawona Frozen Foods locations and offices. It is the responsibility of all third-party recruiters and vendors to know this policy.