R&D and Commercialization Manager (Meat Snacks)

Fitt Talent Partners is a specialized recruitment firm for top health and wellness companies.

We’re filling this role for a client, a real-food nutrition company focused on regeneratively raised meat snacks and supplements, crafted to make eating like a human easy, honest, and impactful.

Job Description

You'll work with the team to drive the next phase of meat snacking innovation, built on regenerative agriculture, nutritional integrity, and real food. We believe meat snacks should come from whole, recognizable ingredients, not synthetics or isolates, and we're looking for someone who shares that conviction.

As the Meat Scientist, you will own the end-to-end product lifecycle for the meat snacking portfolio. This includes R&D, commercialization, quality oversight specific to meat products, and ongoing manufacturing management. You will be instrumental in expanding our product offerings while maintaining our strict standards for sourcing, quality, and compliance.

You MUST have deep experience working in the meat snack category to be considered for this role.

Responsibilities

Product Development & Optimization

• Own our Meat Snacking Product suite, including all SKUs.

• Drive product development of new SKUs and line extensions from concept to launch.

• Lead product improvement initiatives for existing SKUs, focusing on sensory attributes, shelf stability, and cost optimization without compromising quality.

• Develop and maintain specifications, formulas, and processing parameters for all meat snack products.

• Support R&D by working with manufacturing development prototypes in lab and pilot settings.

• Lead building supply chains in regenerative agriculture ensuring support to the suppliers that need brands like us to thrive.

Commercialization & Manufacturing

• Plan and execute all production trials, including first production runs, ensuring successful scale-up and adherence to specifications.

• Serve as the primary technical point of contact for ongoing manufacturing relationships with co-packers.

• Oversee the transition from R&D to first production, including packaging review, final specification sign-off, and labeling accuracy.

• Collaborate with the QA team to ensure all meat products meet strict food safety (USDA/FDA, HACCP/HARPC), quality, and regulatory compliance standards.

• Develop repeatable processes that accelerate quality-compliant concept-to-launch timelines for meat products.

Operations & Relationship Management

• Serve as the day-to-day point of contact for co-manufacturers to manage production timelines, troubleshoot technical issues, and ensure specification adherence.

• Travel onsite frequently for production runs, quality audits, troubleshooting, and relationship building.

• Drive accountability on documentation, batch accuracy, and adherence to specs.

• Identify opportunities to streamline quality processes, reduce waste, and enhance overall product quality and safety within the meat snack category.

About You

• 6+ years of experience in meat snack manufacturing, product development, or food science specifically focused on meat products (jerky, sticks, bars, etc.).

• Bachelor’s degree in Meat Science, Food Science, or a related field; advanced degree preferred.

• Strong understanding of USDA/FDA regulatory compliance, food safety principles (HACCP/HARPC), and GMPs specific to meat product processing.

• Proven success working with co-manufacturers/co-packers and leading technical scale-up in fast-paced innovation cycles.

• Experience in formula creation, process development, and managing production trials.

• Excellent project management and cross-functional communication skills.

• Comfortable in a lean, high-growth environment.

• Ability to balance high-level strategy with hands-on execution (e.g., prototype development, batch troubleshooting).

• Strong organizational systems and bias for action.

• Willingness to travel frequently for site visits, production trials, and audits.