Edible Product Development Scientist

VitaKey is an exciting start-up developing and commercializing proprietary technology for controlled, targeted, extended, and sustained delivery of macronutrients, micronutrients, probiotics, biologics, small molecules, etc. to be included in everyday foods and beverages to improve human health. We are seeking innovative and motivated scientists and engineers to be part of the company's next-phase of growth at our Durham NC HQ. Learn more about our company on our website at www.VitaKey.com

Role Summary

Responsibilities will involve designing, formulation, scale-up, and evaluation of edible products (e.g., bars, gels, drinks) containing VitaKey platform technologies. Responsibilities will also include hands-on benchwork in an R&D laboratory, travel to partner manufacturing sites (~20% travel), technology transfer from lab scale to pilot and manufacturing scale. Responsibilities will also include identifying, selecting, and managing interactions with process development and manufacturing partners. You will serve as an independent contributor with the opportunity to build a product development team. Projects will be highly interdisciplinary, at the intersection of engineering, biochemistry, materials science, food science and nutrition.

Duties and Responsibilities

• Perform formulation development for bars, gels, drinks, etc. aiming to incorporate VitaKey platform technologies
• Screen edible materials for triggered physicochemical transitions (e.g., lubrication, swelling) to include in edible products
• Use spray drying, hot melt extrusion, fluidized bed coating, wet granulation, dry granulation, various milling, lyophilization, etc. for hands-on preparation of novel food products at lab scale
• Develop analytical and extraction methodologies to quantify VitaKey payloads incorporated into edible matrices
• Identify, evaluate, select, and manage edible product development and manufacturing partners including coordinating material and data transfer
• Use principles of spray drying, hot melt extrusion, fluidized bed coating, wet granulation, dry granulation, various milling, lyophilization, etc. to enable QBD large-scale manufacturing (e.g., single, double, triple-digit kg) of VitaKey edible products at selected manufacturing partners
• Identify critical quality attributes and process parameters and implement appropriate analytical methodology (e.g., FT-IR, Raman, viscosity, MS/MS, particle size analysis, microscopy, differential scanning calorimetry, UV-VIS, water activity) to support technology transfer from lab scale to pilot and manufacturing scale
• Establish documentation practices including sample submission systems, method validations, certificates of analysis, and method transfers
• Prepare monthly reports of project progress
• Establish batch testing specifications for raw materials and formulations manufactured at scale to support lot release
• Interface with bench formulation R&D teams, analytical development, and clinical teams to support company-wide objectives; regularly present findings at company meetings
• Work with external partners for raw materials selection and characterization
• Travel to pilot-/manufacturing-sites to oversee and lead product development
• May mentor and direct other scientists

Qualifications

• MS with a minimum of 5-10 years of experience or PhD with 3-7 additional years of experience in the food, supplement, or nutraceutical spaces in product development.
• Direct experience with production and marketing of a bar, gel, or drink product is highly preferred
• Candidates are ideally proficient in granulation and milling, or unit operations such as spray drying, hot melt extrusion, fluidized bed coating, wet granulation, dry granulation, various milling, and lyophilization
• Experience working with professionals from formulation science, chemical engineering, bioengineering, pharmaceutical sciences, polymer chemistry, food science or allied disciplines
• Experience with QA, QC, CQA, establishing testing specifications, determining critical process parameters, etc.
• Experience working with proteins, carbohydrates, polymers, microparticles, bacteria, and/or lipids
• Entrepreneurial and self-motivated work style; comfort in ambiguity
• Excellent cross-disciplinary skills in communicating ideas to both scientists and non-scientists
• Startup experience is highly valued, but not required.
• Candidates must work full time on-site in Durham, NC
• Ability to adjust rapidly to changing scientific priorities and technologies