Join Riverside Natural Foods Ltd., a $300 million+ Canadian-based, family-owned, and globally operating business, committed to leaving the world better than we found it. As a B-Corp certified, Triple-Bottom Line company, we proudly manufacture nutritious, ‘better-for-you’ snacks such as MadeGood and GOOD TO GO. We value teamwork, humility, respect, ownership, adaptability, grit, and fun.
We’re on an ambitious mission to double our business by 2027, and we need talented individuals like you to help us reach new heights. At Riverside, you’ll have the opportunity to chart your own path to success while contributing to ours. We believe anything worth doing is worth doing right, and our values will guide us through the rugged terrain – and yes, it will get rough. But that’s what makes the journey worthwhile.
So, lace up your boots and let’s tackle the climb together.
You can learn more about us at www.riversidenaturalfoods.com.
The Senior Food Scientist on the Technical Innovation team will be responsible for driving innovation and bringing new formulations to life. The Senior Food Scientist will be a creative self-starter with a strong understanding of ingredient functionality and manufacturing processes and how to leverage them into winning innovations. The candidate should be a strong developer of new food products, from concept to functional prototype.
The ideal candidate should be a strategic thinker who can leverage scientific principles to make quick and informed decisions. They should be able to navigate complex technical challenges nimbly and translate scientific findings into actionable insights. This role requires someone who is comfortable with ambiguity and change, able to adapt to evolving priorities and challenges, and possesses the grit to overcome steep obstacles.
The successful candidate should embody Riverside’s core values and be a role model for the team. They should be passionate about science and committed to delivering honest results.

EDUCATION & QUALIFICATIONS

• Post-secondary degree in Food Science, Food Technology, Chemistry, Engineering, or related field
• Experience in Food Research and Development (5+ years), ideally a portion in food/recipe/product innovation development
• Experience working in kitchens, laboratories, pilot plants, and/or manufacturing facilities
• Experience in bakery, slab, sweet or savoury snack foods, confectionary, dessert, inclusions, or chocolate is preferred
• Proficient with MS Office, MS Outlook, MS Excel, SharePoint. Experience with Genesis, Specright, Monday.com an asset

SKILLS & ABILITIES

• Proactive and self-motivated; able to see gaps and take OWNERSHIP to fill them without being asked
• Excellent analytical and problem-solving skills, driven to seek honest answers
• Disciplined; uses food science fundamentals and maintains technical rigour in everyday work
• Demonstrated ADAPTABILITY and GRIT when faced with setbacks, rapid change and ambiguity
• Creative flair; pushes the boundaries to find unconventional solutions
• Embraces discomfort, HUMBLE and excited to explore new challenges and territories
• PASSIONATE for innovation and brings enthusiasm daily
• Deep desire for knowledge, personal skill development and career growth
• Exceptional time management and organizational skills; can function independently
• Known as a TEAM player, who is skilled in collaboration and operates with RESPECT
• Demonstrates leadership skills and the ability to mentor junior team members
• Ability to sample Riverside brands’ products and ingredients or products of interest
• Ability to travel regularly to Riverside manufacturing sites (Toronto/Vaughan area) and occasionally nationally/internationally (5%)

• Demonstrate and uphold Riverside’s Core Values
• Identify innovative new opportunities to meet Riverside’s current needs and future growth plans within branded, incubator and private label pillars. Including but not limited to:
• Collaborate with cross-functional teams to identify new technology or growth opportunities
• Keep abreast of industry trends, new technologies and ingredients in the global snack marketplace and beyond
• Attend trade shows, seminars, customer/vendor meetings, etc. as needed
• Build collaborative relationships with existing or new ingredient vendor partners on innovative use of existing or new ingredients
• Complete proof of principle research and testing to ensure feasibility and readiness of new products for refinement and launch in large scale manufacturing. Including but not limited to:
• Use scientific methods to define testing methodology
• Perform testing at lab scale, pilot scale or potentially full-scale manufacturing trials both internally and externally to ensure feasibility
• Use sound scientific evidence to seek truth, rather than success or failure. Use this information to make informed decisions and provide actionable insights
• Clearly communicate complex topics to cross-functional and non-technical stakeholders
• Collaborates with brand marketing teams to define concepts and flavours, ensuring alignment with market & consumer trends, brand guardrails and technical feasibility
• Manages complex projects involving multiple stakeholders. Develop full technical timelines and holds team members accountable.
• Develop new base recipes and flavours in line with required brand attributes, cost targets, timelines, certifications (e.g. Kosher, Organic, Vegan, Gluten-Free, etc.), and other relevant food safety, regulatory and quality parameters
• Develop and maintain accurate project records to ensure seamless transitions of project ownership and capture learnings from project successes and failures
• Respect and promote the company’s health and safety program, maintaining a safe working environment and ensure the continued compliance with the Occupational Health and Safety act and JHSC recommendations
• Independently manage timeline and documentation of personal project load
• Demonstrate adaptability when faced with changes to project scope and timelines, anticipate and provide risk assessments and mitigation plans
• Provide training, mentorship and technical support of fellow R&D and Technical Innovation colleagues. Support onboarding of new staff as needed
• May have the opportunity to supervise co-op student(s)
• Other duties as required