Director of Research and Development - Technical Services & Innovation

The Morning Star Company
Director of Technical Services & Innovation
Los Banos, CA

About The Morning Star Company

The Morning Star Company is the world’s largest independent producer of bulk tomato ingredient products and one of the most technologically advanced tomato processing companies in the global food industry. Through its affiliated companies, Morning Star processes approximately 40% of California’s processing tomato crop, operating three state-of-the-art manufacturing facilities in California together with extensive farming, transplanting, harvesting, logistics, and transportation operations.

Morning Star manufactures tomato paste, diced tomatoes, canned tomato products, sauces, and specialty food ingredients supplied to many of the world’s leading consumer packaged goods companies, foodservice organizations, industrial food manufacturers, and retailers. Our reputation has been built upon uncompromising quality, innovation, integrity, food safety, operational excellence, and long-term customer partnerships.

The company employs approximately 500 year-round colleagues and more than 3,000 seasonal colleagues.

Unlike traditional organizations, Morning Star operates through Mission Focused Self-Management™, an innovative management philosophy that eliminates formal hierarchy and empowers every colleague to assume personal responsibility, build influence through expertise, and create value through initiative and collaboration. We seek professionals who thrive in an entrepreneurial environment where leadership is earned through integrity, competence, creativity, and results rather than organizational title.

The Opportunity

Morning Star is seeking an accomplished food scientist and technical leader to serve as Director of Technical Services & Innovation.

This executive leadership role is responsible for providing world-class technical leadership across research and development, product innovation, process development, commercialization, customer technical support, packaging innovation, food safety, and manufacturing optimization.

The successful candidate will partner closely with customers, agricultural operations, manufacturing teams, suppliers, and commercial colleagues to identify opportunities, solve complex technical challenges, commercialize new products, improve manufacturing processes, and create long-term competitive advantages for Morning Star and its customers.

This position requires exceptional scientific knowledge, business acumen, creativity, customer engagement skills, and the ability to influence others within Morning Star’s Mission Focused Self-Management™ culture.

Primary Responsibilities

1. Technical Leadership
   1. Provide strategic leadership for all technical services activities across Morning Star and affiliated companies.
   2. Develop and execute technical strategies supporting innovation, commercialization, manufacturing excellence, food safety, quality, and customer growth.
   3. Serve as the Company’s principal technical resource for customers, manufacturing operations, and executive leadership.
   4. Continuously identify opportunities to improve product quality, manufacturing efficiency, customer satisfaction, and profitability.
2. Research & Product Innovation
   1. Lead research, development, formulation, and commercialization of new products.
   2. Develop innovative ingredient systems and finished food products utilizing tomato ingredients and complementary agricultural products.
   3. Evaluate emerging food trends, consumer preferences, competitive products, and new technologies.
   4. Translate customer concepts into commercially successful products.
   5. Develop bench-top formulations and pilot-scale products for customer evaluation.
   6. Support commercialization through full-scale manufacturing validation.
3. Process Development & Manufacturing Technology
   1. Provide technical leadership regarding:
      • Low-acid and acidified food processing
      • Hot-fill processing
      • Retort processing
      • Aseptic processing
      • Dehydration technologies
      • Concentration and evaporation systems
      • Thermal processing
      • Ingredient functionality
      • Process optimization
      • Hygienic equipment design
   2. Develop manufacturing processes that improve:
      • Product quality
      • Production efficiency
      • Yield
      • Sustainability
      • Food safety
      • Reliability
      • Cost competitiveness
4. Packaging Innovation
   1. Provide technical leadership regarding primary and secondary packaging systems, including:
      • Steel cans
      • Flexible pouches
      • Aseptic packaging
      • Bulk ingredient packaging
      • Foodservice packaging
      • Retail packaging
      • Corrugated systems
      • Plastic packaging
      • Palletization
      • Printing technologies
      • Sustainable packaging solutions
   2. Evaluate emerging packaging technologies and implement improvements supporting customer and manufacturing objectives.
5. Customer Technical Leadership
   1. Develop strong relationships with customers by becoming a trusted technical advisor.  Lead customer innovation sessions.  Deliver technical presentations.
   2. Assist customers with:
      • Product development
      • Product reformulation
      • Manufacturing optimization
      • Ingredient functionality
      • Packaging selection
      • Product specifications
      • Cost optimization
      • Customer documentation and questionnaires
   3. Work collaboratively with commercial teams to identify new business opportunities.
6. Agricultural Innovation
   1. Collaborate with agricultural operations regarding tomatoes, peppers, tomatillos, basil, and other specialty crops.
   2. Identify opportunities to improve raw material quality, functionality, processing characteristics, sustainability, and economics.
   3. Leverage agricultural expertise to create differentiated customer solutions.
7. Food Safety & Regulatory Leadership
   1. Support Company compliance with:
      • FDA regulations
      • USDA requirements
      • FSMA
      • European Union (EU) and European Food Safety Authority (EFSA) standards
      • Codex Alimentarius and all international food standards
      • Domestic and international labeling laws
      • Preventive Controls
      • HACCP, SQF, BRCGS, GFSI
      • Customer standards
   2. Support customer, regulatory, and third-party audits.  Assist manufacturing facilities with investigations, corrective actions, validation activities, and continuous improvement initiatives.
8. Commercialization & Project Leadership
   1. Lead projects from concept through commercialization. Develop project timelines, milestones, validation protocols, and commercialization strategies.
   2. Coordinate cross-functional teams including:
      • Manufacturing
      • Engineering
      • Agriculture
      • Procurement
      • Quality
      • Automation
      • Commercial
      • Customers
      • External partners
   3. Successfully manage multiple concurrent projects while meeting aggressive timelines.
9. Continuous Improvement
   1. Identify opportunities to improve:
      • Product performance
      • Manufacturing capability
      • Customer satisfaction
      • Technical knowledge
      • Sustainability
      • Operational excellence
      • Innovation capability
   2. Implement data-driven decision making and continuous improvement methodologies throughout the organization.

Qualifications

The successful candidate will possess:

• Master’s degree or Ph.D. in Food Science, Food Engineering, Chemical Engineering, Food Technology, or a related scientific discipline preferred.
• Minimum of ten years of progressive technical leadership experience within the food manufacturing industry.
• Demonstrated success commercializing food products from concept through full-scale manufacturing.
• Extensive knowledge of food chemistry, food microbiology, thermal processing, ingredient functionality, product development, and manufacturing operations.
• Strong understanding of FDA regulations, FSMA, HACCP, Preventive Controls, nutritional labeling, food packaging regulations, and quality management systems.
• Experience with aseptic processing, hot-fill processing, retorts, dehydrated foods, low- and high-acid foods, and industrial ingredient manufacturing.
• Excellent analytical, problem-solving, communication, and presentation skills.
• Proven ability to build long-term relationships with customers and cross-functional teams.
• High ethical standards, intellectual curiosity, creativity, and entrepreneurial initiative.
• Ability to travel domestically and internationally as business needs require.

Compensation & Benefits

Morning Star offers a highly competitive executive compensation package commensurate with qualifications and experience.

Comprehensive Benefits Include

• Industry-leading medical, dental, and vision coverage for colleagues and eligible family members, with Company-paid premiums.
• Company contributions to Health Savings Accounts (HSA).
• 401(k) retirement plan with Company matching contributions.
• Paid vacation and holidays.
• Professional development opportunities.
• The opportunity to help shape one of the world’s most innovative food manufacturing organizations.

Join Morning Star

If you are an accomplished technical leader who is passionate about innovation, commercialization, customer success, and manufacturing excellence—and who seeks the opportunity to make a lasting impact within one of the world’s premier food ingredient companies—we invite you to explore a career with The Morning Star Company.

At Morning Star, leadership is earned through knowledge, integrity, initiative, and results.