Nutraceutical R&D Manager

Location: On site, Jacksonville, FL

A fast-growing manufacturer in the health and wellness products space is looking for a hands-on innovation leader to guide the next stage of product development and process improvement. This is a high impact role for someone who enjoys turning complex formulation challenges into commercially successful products, building stronger systems, and shaping how R&D supports a growing business. You will have visible influence across innovation, scale up, quality, and operational performance while helping bring new functional products to market.

This role is central to the company’s next phase of growth. Demand is strong, but progress has been limited by the pace of formulation and development work. There is an active pipeline of projects that need clear technical direction to move from concept into production. The person in this role will make an immediate impact by assessing priorities, resolving formulation obstacles, and helping the business convert innovation into scalable manufacturing success.

What You Will Do

• Lead formulation and commercialization of functional gummy and chewable products, balancing stability, sensory quality, regulatory needs, and manufacturing readiness.
• Translate bench concepts into repeatable plant processes by defining critical parameters for cooking, depositing, setting, drying, finishing, and packaging handoff.
• Guide cross functional product launches with operations, quality, procurement, and commercial partners to improve speed, consistency, and margin performance.
• Build practical development standards, technical documentation, and change control practices that support scale, traceability, and long-term knowledge retention.
• Use structured experimentation and data analysis to resolve issues involving texture, moisture, flavor, potency, stickiness, and shelf life.
• Partner with food safety and quality leaders to align innovation work with preventive controls, ingredient risk management, and good manufacturing practices.
• Evaluate new ingredients, technologies, and supplier capabilities to expand the product pipeline while protecting manufacturability and cost targets.
• Coach and develop a small technical team while remaining hands on in trials, troubleshooting, and commercialization support.

What Success Looks Like

You bring strong product development judgment, practical plant awareness, and the ability to move quickly without sacrificing rigor. You know how to balance formulation science with real world production constraints, and you are comfortable leading projects from concept through launch. You are energized by building better processes, mentoring others, and solving technical problems that directly improve quality, throughput, and customer satisfaction.

Ideal Background

• Bachelor’s degree in food science, Chemistry, Chemical Engineering, or a related technical field
• Significant experience in nutraceutical, dietary supplement, or functional food development, with direct ownership of products that reached commercial production
• Strong understanding of hydrocolloids, moisture control, pH systems, ingredient compatibility, and shelf stable product behavior
• Experience partnering with manufacturing and quality teams in a regulated environment
• Comfortable authoring technical documentation, guiding scale up, and leading multiple development priorities at once
• Prior leadership experience in a food, supplement, or confectionery setting is strongly preferred

Why Candidates Will Be Interested

This is an opportunity to step into a visible leadership role where innovation and execution both matter. The team is looking for someone who can help elevate product development capabilities, strengthen technical discipline, and play a meaningful role in future growth. For the right person, this offers a rare blend of strategic influence and hands-on impact.

About Blue Signal:  

Blue Signal is an award-winning, executive search firm specializing in various specialties. Our recruiters have a proven track record of placing top-tier talent across industry verticals, with deep expertise in numerous professional services. Learn more at bit.ly/46Gs4yS