RD&A Senior Technologist

About Kerry

About the role

As an RD&A Senior Technologist (Food Microbiology), you will work in the Kerry Food Protection & Preservation Research, Development & Applications (RD&A) Team. You will work on projects related to the optimisation of existing Kerry products and support the development of new products for control of spoilage organisms and pathogens. 

In this role, you will be responsible for setting up, conducting, and managing microbiological studies within various food applications. You will validate the performance of Kerry’s clean-label and conventional antimicrobial solutions and translate research results into clear value propositions for internal and external stakeholders. 

You will work closely with RD&A teams in Europe and APMEA and play a key role in strengthening Kerry’s expertise in food safety and shelf-life extension. You will be responsible for the screening of antimicrobials, as well as the execution of shelf-life and microbial challenge studies evaluating the performance of Kerry’s Food protection portfolio in a wide variety of food matrices. You will draw conclusions and provide feedback to the (project) manager. 

Key Responsibilities

• Analysing and interpreting experimental data and translating these into clear conclusions and value propositions for internal stakeholders (RD&A, Business Development, Product Managers, Sales) and customers. 
• Validating the performance of Kerry’s clean-label and conventional antimicrobial products in existing and new applications. 
• Benchmarking Kerry solutions against competing technologies. 
• Coordinating external challenge studies, including material management, data processing, and reporting. 
• Advising on study design, execution, and data analysis for internal and external projects and presenting data to customers and key internal stakeholders. 
• Building strong relationships with RD&A colleagues within Kerry Europe and APMEA. 

Qualifications and skills

• B.Sc. or M.Sc. in Food Safety, Food Microbiology, or a similar field. 
• 1–5 years of experience in food microbiology or work experience in microbiology, preferably related to food.  
• Experience with bakery, pet food, meat, or savoury applications is a plus. 
• Experience with microbial modeling is an advantage. 
• Hands-on, with a practical mindset. 
• Strong communication skills and the ability to report and present clearly to diverse audiences. Fluency in English, both oral and written is required. Additional languages are beneficial. 
• In-depth knowledge of food microbiology, spoilage organisms, pathogens, and factors influencing microbial growth. 
• Strives for high standards, seeks innovative solutions, drives continuous improvement of products and processes, and demonstrates a high degree of intellectual curiosity. 
• Travel Requirements 0-10% 

What we offer

• A varied role within a professional yet informal team. While we work hard, we also make time to enjoy regular team activities together.
• Competitive salary.
• Excellent secondary benefits, including a fully employer-funded pension scheme.
• 25 days of annual leave.
• Collective discount on individual insurance policies.