Senior Development Technologist

Fife, Scotland (On-site)

Salary: Competitive & benefits

Vickerstock are working in partnership with a global seafood business to recruit a Senior Development Technologist for their site in Fife.

This is a fantastic opportunity for an experienced food professional to take ownership of complex product launches across fresh, smoked and added-value seafood categories, working closely with major UK retailers.

You will play a pivotal role in taking products from concept handover through to full-scale manufacture, ensuring processes are robust, efficient and fully compliant within a highly regulated food production environment.

Your new role:

Reporting to the Process Development Manager, you will lead the coordination and execution of new and modified product launches, acting as a key technical contact across cross-functional teams and retail customers.

This role carries a higher level of autonomy and responsibility, including regular retailer interaction and occasional deputising for the Process Development Manager.

Key responsibilities will include:

• Leading preparation and coordination of new and revised product launches.
• Planning, managing and executing production trials to ensure scalability, repeatability and food safety compliance.
• Identifying and resolving potential process or production issues ahead of launch.
• Coordinating post-trial reviews, sampling and continuous improvement actions.
• Ensuring accurate and complete data capture to support commercial costings and profitability.
• Working closely with Technical, Production, Engineering and Finance teams to develop robust specifications and ensure accurate ERP system setup.
• Managing artwork approval and certification requirements for on-pack claims within your product portfolio.
• Supporting implementation of new processes or machinery alongside engineering teams.
• Maintaining regular contact with retailer technologists and supporting Gate approval processes.
• Conducting store visits, product benchmarking and customer/supplier visits where required.

The role is primarily office hours; however, flexibility is required to support evening or weekend trials when necessary.

What you'll need to succeed:

• Degree or diploma in Food Science, Chemistry, Microbiology or related discipline.
• Proven experience in a similar Development or Senior Development role within food manufacturing (seafood or protein experience advantageous).
• Strong understanding of food processing, retailer standards and regulatory frameworks.
• Demonstrable experience leading factory trials and successful product launches.
• Experience working directly with retailer technologists.
• Strong commercial awareness and understanding of product costings.
• Excellent organisational skills with high attention to detail.
• Ability to manage multiple projects and influence cross-functional teams.

Desirable:

• Food Safety qualification (REHIS or equivalent).
• Experience supporting capital projects or new process implementation.
• Experience within a major retail-facing manufacturing environment.

What you'll receive:

• Competitive salary.
• Benefits package.
• Opportunity to work within a global seafood business with strong retail partnerships.
• High level of autonomy and ownership across product launches.
• Genuine opportunity to progress within a growing and forward-thinking organisation.

To speak in absolute confidence about this opportunity, please send an up-to-date CV via the link provided or contact Maria Murphy, Principal Recruitment Consultant at Vickerstock.