Director of Research

Director Research & Development

SOPAKCO remains one of the top providers of meals ready to eat, commonly known as MREs, to the U.S. military. In addition to emergency meal rations, SOPAKCO has evolved to become an innovative food processing company for major national and international brands.

SOPAKCO is building a new state-of-the-art food processing and packaging facility, designed to increase manufacturing capacity and flexibility. The new facility will be located in Laurinburg, (Scotland County) North Carolina. Bordering South Carolina, this southeastern region is known for industry and agriculture. With the new facility, in addition to our South Carolina campuses, we will be better able to serve our existing customers while also expanding our capacity to position ourselves for growth.

Scotland County is about two hours to the mountains and two hours to the coast by car. Two international airports are within 90 miles. Fayetteville and Fort Bragg are about an hour away. North Carolina Highway 74 turns into Interstate-74 outside Laurinburg, connecting residents to I-95.

Surrounding Scotland County is Hoke, Robeson, Richmond, and Moore counties in North Carolina and Marlboro County in South Carolina.

Summary: The Director of Research & Development serves as a full-time member of the R&D team and is accountable for delivering R&D objectives. This includes (but is not limited to): quality improvement initiatives, line extensions, cost reduction initiatives, new product development, technology evaluations, developing standard operating procedures (S.O.P.), establishing process critical control points and specifications, quality measurement and tolerances, thermal processing for sterility, and general manufacturing support. The incumbent has responsibility for communication and implementation of technical development throughout the supply chain (engineering, manufacturing, co-packers, Q.A., procurement, logistics etc.). This person will be responsible for leading the team producing products for commercial lines.

Manage and lead the R&D team in developing new products and technologies:

• Overseeing all aspects of research and development within the organization
• Manage, mentor, and develop the R&D staff.
• Oversee and implement thermal processing technologies for food products.
• Developing new products and processes for the R&D Team
• Consulting with top management and research and development team and making recommendations based on research findings and product performance.
• Initiating, fostering, maintaining external relationships and partnerships with a host of different relevant organizations to include customer operations, R&D, Quality Teams, and Brand Management.
• Create functional strategic and specific objectives.
• Conducting research into innovative technologies that may be applicable to SOPAKCO’s overall strategic goals.
• Resource allocation and R&D decision making
• Develop and manage project timelines, budgets, and resources.
• Collaborate with cross-functional teams to ensure successful product launches.
• Conduct research on new ingredients, processing techniques, and technologies.
• Develop and maintain relationships with key suppliers and vendors.
• Ensure compliance with regulatory requirements and food safety standards.

Qualifications:

• Bachelor’s degree in food science, Food Engineering, or related field (master’s degree preferred).
• Minimum of 5-10 years of experience in R&D within the food industry.
• Expertise in thermal processing technologies.
• Strong project management skills with the ability to lead cross-functional teams.
• Experience in managing and developing teams.
• Excellent communication, organizational, and problem-solving skills.
• Knowledge of regulatory requirements and food safety standards.
• Experience with CRM, Six Sigma, or stage gate processes.
• Self-starter with a passion for innovation.
• Must have experience in working with proteins: Eggs, Almonds, Beef, Pork, Chicken, Cottage Cheese, Greek Yogurt, Milk, Lentils, Soups, Sauces, Lean Beef, Fish, Quinoa, Protein Powders, and, Peanuts.