Sr. Scientist, Raw Materials Characterization

About us

At the forefront of farming and food, UPSIDE Foods is innovating new ways to produce real meat, without the need to breed, feed and slaughter animals. Our process begins with an animal cell, which is cultivated and harvested as meat. UPSIDE Foods is a mission-driven company focused on bringing to meat lovers an authentic product that is truly humane, sustainably produced, nutritious and delicious! We are now expanding our team of dedicated professionals across disciplines to make better meat for a better world.

About this job

Working closely with upstream teams, the Sr. Scientist, Raw Materials Characterization will lead the overall workstream for the Product & Formulation team to characterize cell-cultured raw materials developed by the upstream teams. The Senior Scientist will be the point person to provide timing feedback to the upstream teams and play a crucial role in developing and optimizing cell-cultured raw materials.  The Senior Scientist will lead a data-driven approach in experiment design to identify the key areas for optimizing quality of cell-cultured raw materials.  This Senior Scientist should have demonstrable expertise in analytical chemistry, texture analysis, color chemistry and have a thorough understanding of meat protein chemistry both fresh and cooked. If you have a burning desire to learn how and why food systems work and to create and develop processes to make it better and more efficient, this would be a great opportunity for you.

Duties include

• Lead a small group of scientists to design and conduct experiments to characterize cell-cultured beef, pork, poultry and seafood raw materials and provide timely feedback to the upstream teams.  
• Coordinate the development of new approaches and procedures for cell-cultured beef, pork, poultry and seafood raw material characterization and build the unique scientific database for UPSIDE Foods
• Collaborate with the upstream teams to develop cell-cultured beef, pork, poultry, and seafood raw materials and identify the key areas for quality improvement.
• Influence research, technical direction and goals of cell-cultured raw material development using statistically analyzed data as a guidance  
• Create raw material specifications to meet quality standards set by UPSIDE Foods.
• Assist with the design and execute cross-functional team projects in understanding key characteristics of  cell-cultured raw materials.
• Assist and partner with the Quality, Food Safety and Regulatory teams to ensure cell-cultured raw materials are meeting USDA/FDA compliance standards.
• Collaborate with the assay team to develop novel analytical protocols for high throughput cell-cultured raw material screening. 
• Evaluate and improve existing test methods to improve accuracy and efficiency of current process including writing recommended operation procedures and standard operating procedures. 
• Work collaboratively with cross-functional teams to meet multiple, complex project deadlines
• Communicate status, risks, and opportunities on raw material product development to senior leadership
• Conduct a wide range of analytical tests including shelf life and product stability studies.
• Stay abreast of current literature and analytical advancements.

About you

• 5 to 10 years research experience in meat science/protein research with a strong background in analytical and organic chemistry.
• At least 2 years of experience leading a small group of research scientists preferably in both applied and basic fresh and cooked meat research. 
• MS or PhD in food science, animal science, protein chemistry, biochemistry, food engineering or other applicable field, or equivalent experience
• Demonstrated ability to lead multiple complex projects, synthesize results, and routinely and effectively communicate key recommendations to leadership.
• Broad working knowledge of muscle meat research including developing novel techniques/analytical procedures to characterize different species of muscle meats,   and sensory analysis.
• Familiar with machine learning models to characterize metabolomic profiles in predicting quality of muscle meats.
• Familiar with different techniques in characterizing textural properties of muscle meats/proteins.
• Hands-on experience in designing, conducting, analyzing and interpreting data from analytical instruments such as spectrophotometer, HPLC, GC-MS, colorimeter, texture analyzer, dynamic rheometer, and electron microscope. 
• Expertise in muscle meat, flavor chemistry, protein chemistry, analytical chemistry, organic chemistry and lipid chemistry.
• Deep desire to learn, explore and experiment new technology for cell-cultured meat processing.
• Ability to continuously challenge assumptions and create innovative solutions.
• Great communication, report writing, presentation and interpersonal skills 
• Can-do attitude, full of integrity, excited to work under our Big Tent
• Must be a good human

UPSIDE Foods is an equal opportunity employer and we value diversity at our company. We do not discriminate on the basis of race, religion, color, national origin, gender, sexual orientation, age, marital status, veteran status, or disability status.