Research and Development Officer

HRsmartrecruit supplies premium flavour and fragrance extracts, raw materials, and specialty chemical ingredients to food, beverage, personal care, and industrial manufacturers across Nigeria. Our core brand theme, "Natural Aroma, Making Real Sense," drives everything we do, from product quality to how we build lasting commercial partnerships.

We are recruiting to fill the position below:

Job Title: Research and Development Officer

Location: Yaba, Lagos

Employment Type: Full-time

Job Description

• We are seeking a Research & Development Officer who will lead product development, innovation, reformulation, and process optimization initiatives to support business growth and product excellence.
• The role is responsible for translating consumer and market insights into commercially viable products, improving existing formulations, optimising manufacturing processes, and ensuring compliance with applicable food safety and regulatory standards.

Key Responsibilities

• Lead new product development from concept generation and formulation through prototyping, sensory evaluation, pilot trials, scale-up, and factory implementation. Identify innovation opportunities through market research, consumer insights, and competitive benchmarking.
• Drive product reformulation and process improvements to enhance product quality, sensory performance, nutritional value, and stability while achieving cost savings without compromising product standards.
• Develop and optimize manufacturing processes, establish validated operating parameters, and collaborate with Process Engineering to resolve scale-up challenges and improve production performance.
• Maintain accurate formulations, product specifications, bills of materials, manufacturing parameters, raw material specifications, and technical dossiers. Collaborate with Regulatory Affairs to support product registrations, claims, labelling, and other regulatory submissions.
• Evaluate and qualify new ingredients and raw materials based on functionality, quality, sensory performance, cost, and sustainability. Partner with Procurement to assess suppliers and explore suitable local sourcing alternatives.
• Provide technical support during product trials, first production runs, and commercialization. Troubleshoot formulation and process issues, collaborate with Production and Quality Assurance, and implement improvements that enhance line efficiency and reduce production deviations.
• Ensure compliance with HACCP, GMP, and ISO 22000 requirements, manage R&D projects and laboratory operations, and coach team members to strengthen technical capability and innovation delivery.

Requirements

• A minimum of a Bachelor’s degree in Food Science, Food Technology, Food Engineering, Chemistry, Biochemistry, Chemical Engineering, or another relevant scientific or engineering discipline.
• At least 3–5 years of relevant experience in research and development, product development, food technology, or process optimization within the food and beverage or FMCG industry.
• A postgraduate qualification in a relevant discipline will be an added advantage.
• Relevant professional certifications in food safety, quality management, product development, or project management will be an advantage.

Other Requirements:

• Strong technical knowledge of product development, formulation, reformulation, and innovation within the food and beverage industry.
• Sound understanding of food chemistry, ingredient functionality, sensory science, product stability, and shelf-life evaluation.
• Knowledge of manufacturing processes, process optimisation, scale-up, and process validation.
• Understanding of food safety and quality management systems, including HACCP, GMP, and ISO 22000.
• Knowledge of applicable Nigerian regulatory requirements, including NAFDAC, SON, and FCCPC requirements relevant to product development and reformulation.
• Strong analytical, experimental, and problem-solving skills, with the ability to interpret trial results and translate findings into practical improvements.
• Excellent stakeholder management and collaboration skills, particularly when working with Marketing, Production, Quality Control, and Procurement.
• Strong leadership, coaching, and team development capabilities.
• Commercial awareness and the ability to balance product quality, consumer expectations, manufacturing feasibility, and cost efficiency.

Application Closing Date

28th November, 2026.