Senior Lead Scientist - Toxicology

Are you passionate about applying toxicology expertise, digital innovation, and scientific judgment to help shape the future of safe and sustainable flavor solutions?

IFF is a global leader in flavors, fragrances, food ingredients and health & biosciences. We deliver sustainable innovations that elevate everyday products.

Taste: Crafting unique, technology-enabled flavor designs that define the identity of food and beverage brands, shape trends in flavor building and fuel market success.

This role can be based in Hilversum, Netherlands or Barcelona, Spain (hybrid role). Be part of a collaborative, innovative, and customer-focused team where together we can achieve greatness and make a real impact. Your potential is our inspiration.

Where You'll Make a Difference

• Provide toxicology and risk assessment expertise for flavor ingredients and products used across global Taste markets.
• Partner closely with Research & Development teams to evaluate the safety profile of new flavor ingredients and technologies throughout the innovation process.
• Conduct and communicate toxicological risk assessments to support ingredient development, product stewardship activities, and customer needs.
• Design and coordinate testing strategies that support ingredient approvals, registrations, and scientific substantiation across multiple regulatory regions.
• Translate complex toxicological data into clear, actionable recommendations for internal stakeholders, regulators, trade associations, and global customers.
• Support customer inquiries by providing scientific safety assessments for ingredients used in food, beverage, nutrition, and pharmaceutical applications.
• Leverage digital platforms, data tools, and emerging technologies to improve toxicology workflows, data management, and decision-making.
• Represent IFF within industry associations, scientific consortia, and external expert networks to support industry collaboration and advocacy.
• Monitor scientific, regulatory, and industry developments to ensure best practices and a proactive approach to ingredient safety globally.

What Makes You the Right Fit

• Advanced degree (MSc, PhD, or equivalent) in Toxicology, Pharmacology, Risk Assessment, or a related scientific discipline.
• 5+ years of industry experience in toxicology, risk assessment, product safety, or a related field (Flavors, Fragrance and/or Pharmaceuticals Industry)
• Strong experience conducting toxicological evaluations and interpreting complex scientific data.
• Ability to communicate technical findings effectively to both scientific and non-scientific audiences.
• Experience working cross-functionally with Research & Development, Regulatory Affairs, Product Stewardship, Quality, and Commercial teams.
• Strong project management, prioritization, and organizational skills in a global matrix environment.
• Excellent written and verbal English communication skills.
• Ability to build credibility and influence with customers, industry partners, and external scientific organizations.

How Would You Stand Out?

• Experience with computational toxicology, digital toxicology platforms, automation tools, or artificial intelligence applications.
• Established professional network across industry, academia, regulatory bodies, or trade associations.
• Familiarity with flavor chemistry, ingredient innovation, and regulatory frameworks such as Food and Drug Administration, Flavor and Extract Manufacturers Association, and European Food Safety Authority.

Why Choose Us?

• Opportunity to influence the safety strategy behind innovative flavor solutions used by leading global food, beverage, and nutrition brands.
• Exposure to highly collaborative projects at the intersection of science, innovation, customer engagement, and digital transformation.
• A global role with strong visibility across Research & Development, Regulatory, Commercial, and Product Stewardship functions.
• Access to industry-leading scientific expertise and professional networks.
• Ongoing learning and development opportunities, including exposure to emerging technologies and artificial intelligence applications.
• Flexible hybrid work environment in either Hilversum or Barcelona.

We are a global leader in taste, scent, and nutrition, offering our customers a broader range of natural solutions and accelerating our growth strategy. At IFF, we believe that your uniqueness unleashes our potential. We value the diverse mosaic of the ethnicity, national origin, race, age, sex, or veteran status. We strive for an inclusive workplace that allows each of our colleagues to bring their authentic self to work regardless of their religion, gender identity & expression, sexual orientation, or disability.

Visit IFF.com/careers/workplace-diversity-and-inclusion to learn more