Scientist Post-Harvest, Shelf-Life and Packaging

Scientist Post-Harvest, Shelf-Life and Packaging - Helmond, North Brabant, The Netherlands

Are you a practically oriented scientist who wants to bridge the gap between innovative crop production and the consumer's plate? This role focuses on optimizing the shelf life for vertically farmed crops and on contributing to the perfect packaging per product. If you enjoy the applied part of science and navigating a complex stakeholder landscape to ensure top quality, this is an opportunity to make a tangible impact. Join them in shaping the future of fresh produce.

Blue Skies Discovery is the research and development heart of a pioneering venture in vertical farming. They are developing new, highly controlled methods for growing a diverse range of crops, starting with lettuce and herbs, but other crops are developed too. Together with a stable European partner with long term vision, they are on a journey from a start-up phase to becoming a "playmaker" in the industry. The organization offers the opportunity to help build the foundations and shape the future of production. Their mission is to deliver superior quality fresh produce by mastering the entire chain, from seed to shelf.

The candidate will join a dynamic environment and report initially to the Managing Director R&D and will work as a central figure, collaborating with numerous internal and external stakeholders. This includes close cooperation with crop scientists, production teams, the corporate marketing department, and packaging specialists. The role involves functionally leading a crop technician who assists with practical experiments. The team culture values constructive communication and building bridges between different areas of expertise. It is important that team members can work together to find solutions, even when interests conflict.

As the Post-Harvest & Packaging Scientist, you are the crucial link between crop development and the consumer, and every step in between. Your main goal is to ensure that products maintain their optimal quality, from the moment of harvest until used by the consumer. Your efforts will actively contribute to reducing food waste. You will be the "spider in the web," managing projects that balance scientific possibilities with practical and commercial realities. Besides that you must have the willingness to support your colleagues with any other activities when needed in special cases (e.g. Supporting with farm work around holiday periods or in case of incidents).

Your responsibilities include:

• Post-Harvest & Shelf-Life Testing: Designing and executing protocols to test product resilience throughout the simulated logistics chain. You will analyse how factors like temperature and transport time affect quality and shelf life.
• Scientific Improvement: Initiating and managing applied research to understand how growing methods influence post-harvest characteristics. This involves finding the "levers" in the growing process that can be adjusted to improve shelf-life and product quality.
• Packaging Development: Collaborating with internal packaging development department and external suppliers to develop and optimize packaging solutions. This requires balancing product protection, cost-effectiveness, production workability, and commercial appeal.
• Stakeholder Management: Acting as one of the central coordinators between R&D, production, marketing, and corporate departments. You will present data-driven advice to facilitate decision-making and build relationships with key partners, including retail clients. Where needed, also collaboration with external (knowledge) providers is part of the role.

This position requires a professional who combines a scientific background with the ability to navigate a complex, evolving organization. You recognize yourself in the following characteristics:

• A Strategic Bridge-Builder: You enjoy networking and connecting people from different departments with varying goals. You can explain complex topics to individuals with different backgrounds.
• Pragmatic and Analytical: You can translate complex challenges into concrete experiments, and are able to prioritize them. You are able to deal with uncertainty and make decisions based on data, without getting lost in the many variables.
• Resilient and Patient: You understand that in a large organization, processes can take time. You can constructively challenge the status quo but can also accept "no" for an answer and afterwards continue to work towards a common goal.
• Enjoys Building: You are not looking for a role with predefined processes. You get energy from helping to create and improve the systems and methods in a company that is on a growth journey.

Your Qualifications

• PhD with 2 years, MSc with 5+ years, or BSc with 7+ years of experience in fresh produce supply chains, agricultural logistics, packaging technology or food waste solutions.
• Demonstrable experience in post-harvest physiology, shelf-life testing, or food packaging is a plus.
• Fluent in English. A good command of German is a strong preference due to collaboration with corporate colleagues. Knowledge of Dutch is a plus too.
• You are a permanent non-smoker (to prevent potential contamination with plant viruses).

This is an opportunity to play a key role in a pioneering company that is shaping the future of fresh food. You will have a high degree of autonomy and the chance to make a direct impact on product quality and business success. The company is in a growth phase, offering a dynamic environment where you can help build processes from the ground up. In addition, the offer includes:

• A full-time contract with the intention for a long lasting cooperation.
• The opportunity to work in a highly innovative and scientific environment.

Respond

Blue Skies Discovery has exclusively outsourced the Recruitment and Selection for the Post-Harvest & Packaging Scientist vacancy to CeresRecruitment. For more information, please contact Danny Fiere, who can be reached by telephone on +31 (0)6-49 87 97 87. Please apply via www.ceresrecruitment.nl. A personality questionnaire is part of the procedure.