Associate Scientist / Meat

This role is ideal for someone with a background in Meat Science, Animal Science, or Food Science who enjoys working directly with meat products, processing equipment, and product development activities. You will gain exposure to sausage, turkey, roast beef, and other processed meat applications while partnering closely with cross-functional teams and customers to deliver innovative solutions.

You will be part of a collaborative RD&A team focused on developing and applying Food Protection, Taste, and Functional ingredient solutions for the Meat market, supporting both customer innovation and commercial product optimization.

Key responsibilities

• Support and execute application and innovation projects from experimental design through trial execution, data analysis, and communication of results across meat and poultry applications.
• Conduct hands-on development work in laboratory, pilot plant, and meat processing environments, including product formulation, processing, and evaluation.
• Design and perform application trials, interpreting results to translate scientific insights into practical, scalable solutions that meet customer and market needs.
• Develop and optimize products including processed meat applications such as sausages, deli meats, turkey, roast beef, and other protein systems.
• Provide technical support for customer and commercial projects, including troubleshooting, product optimization, and participation in technical discussions and customer presentations.
• Collaborate with Applications, Culinary, Commercial, Marketing, Sensory, Regulatory, and R&D teams to execute projects aligned with business objectives.
• Document and communicate technical findings through reports, trial summaries, and presentations for both technical and non-technical audiences.Participate in sensory programs and product evaluations to support application development and validation.
• Contribute to continuous improvement initiatives involving laboratory methods, pilot plant operations, and application workflows.
• Support customer visits, demonstrations, and application trials at Kerry and customer locations.
• Maintain a safe, clean, and organized work environment while adhering to quality, food safety, and environmental standards.

Qualifications and skills

• Bachelor's degree in Meat Science, Animal Science, Food Science, Food Process Engineering , or a related technical field.
• Hands-on experience with meat processing, food processing, formulation, or product development through academic projects, internships, research programs, or industry experience.
• Strong interest in meat science, meat processing, and applied product development.
• 1–5 years of experience in food or meat product development, processing, applications, or manufacturing environments.
• Experience working in pilot plant, meat processing, manufacturing, or USDA-regulated environments.
• Understanding of ingredient functionality including proteins, collagen, stocks, broths, starches, gums, flavors, and food protection systems.
• Foundational knowledge of food chemistry, meat science, microbiology, sensory science, and food processing.
• Experience conducting and documenting experiments in a structured, scientific manner.
• Mechanical aptitude and comfort operating, troubleshooting, and maintaining pilot plant and processing equipment.
• Experience working directly with customers or supporting customer-facing innovation projects.

The pay range for this position is $70,100- $109,050 in Annual Salary. Kerry typically does not hire an individual at the top or near the top of the range, as we are a pay-for-performance company, and this range is set to continue to reward performance annually while in role. Compensation decisions are dependent on the facts and circumstances of each case. The specific compensation offered to a candidate within the above range may be influenced by a variety of factors including skills, qualifications, experience, and internal equity. Kerry offers a competitive benefits package, including medical, dental, vision, paid time off, a 401(k) plan with employee and company contribution opportunities, Employee Share Plan, Life, disability, and accident insurance, and tuition reimbursement. This job posting is anticipated to expire on November 30th, 2026.

Kerry is an equal opportunity employer. Employment decisions are made without regard to race, color, religion, national or ethnic origin, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, age disability, protected veteran status or other characteristics protected by law. Kerry will only employ those who are legally authorized to work in the United States for this opening. Any offer of employment is conditional upon the successful completion of a background investigation and drug screen. Additional information can be found at: Know Your Rights: Workplace Discrimination is Illegal (dol.gov).

Beware of scams online or from individuals claiming to represent us. A Kerry employee will not solicit candidates through a non-Kerry email address or phone number. In addition, Kerry does not currently utilise video chat rooms (e.g., Google Hangouts) to conduct interviews. Refuse any request that asks you to provide payment to participate in the hiring process (e.g., purchasing a “starter kit,” investing in training, or something similar). Kerry will not ask you to pay any money at any point in the hiring process with the exception of reimbursable travel expenses. In addition, any payments made by Kerry will be from official firm accounts bearing the Kerry name.