Background

Tropical Heat was established in 1973 as a small ethnic snack cottage industry. Today, we are one of the leading manufacturers of spices and snacks in the East African region and our brand Tropical Heat is a household name in Kenya. With our very strong and expert technical team, we manufacture a vast range of spices and snacks. The spices include pure sp...

Summary

The Company is seeking an innovative and technically strong R&D Manager / Food Scientist to lead product development across snacks, spices, seasonings, herbs, and new categories. This role is responsible for developing new products, improving existing formulations, ensuring product consistency, and supporting scale-up from pilot trials to full production. The R&D Manager will combine hands-on formulation work with strong project management and cross-functional collaboration.

Key Responsibilities

• Lead development of new products from concept to launch across snacks, spices, and seasoning categories.
• Conduct formulation work, ingredient selection, trials, sensory evaluations, and stability testing.
• Improve existing products for flavour, texture, quality, cost optimisation, and compliance.
• Work closely with Production to scale formulations to commercial manufacturing.
• Prepare and maintain accurate formulations, technical data sheets, and product specifications.
• Collaborate with Quality, Procurement, and Marketing on product performance, regulatory requirements, and claims.
• Manage the R&D lab, equipment, samples, trials, and documentation systems.
• Benchmark competitor products, track global trends, and propose new product opportunities.
• Coordinate product shelf-life studies, allergen assessments, and risk evaluations.
• Lead factory trials, prepare trial reports, and ensure successful handover to operations.
• Support customer presentations, product demonstrations, and technical training where required.
• Ensure all formulations adhere to internal standards, regulatory guidelines, and food safety requirements.

Qualifications and Experience

• Bachelor’s or Master’s degree in Food Science, Food Technology, Chemistry, or related field.
• Minimum 5 to 8 years’ hands-on experience in food product development.
• Experience in snacks, seasonings, spices, cereals, or similar FMCG categories is a strong advantage.
• Strong understanding of ingredients, functional properties, flavour systems, and processing technologies.
• Demonstrated ability to manage multiple R&D projects in a fast-paced environment.
• Familiarity with HACCP, ISO, FSSC, and regulatory labelling requirements.

Personal Attributes

• Acts with integrity, professionalism, and a strong sense of responsibility.
• Brings enthusiasm, drive, and a proactive approach to product development.
• Maintains high attention to detail, accuracy, and quality in formulations and documentation.
• Organised, disciplined, and consistent in trial planning, reporting, and follow-through.
• Collaborates well with colleagues across Production, Quality, Procurement, and Marketing.
• Calm under pressure, solutions-focused, and able to balance technical depth with practical decision making.
• Shows initiative, adaptability, creativity, and a continuous improvement mindset.

• Lead development of new products from concept to launch across snacks, spices, and seasoning categories.
• Conduct formulation work, ingredient selection, trials, sensory evaluations, and stability testing.
• Improve existing products for flavour, texture, quality, cost optimisation, and compliance.
• Work closely with Production to scale formulations to commercial manufacturing.
• Prepare and maintain accurate formulations, technical data sheets, and product specifications.
• Collaborate with Quality, Procurement, and Marketing on product performance, regulatory requirements, and claims.
• Manage the R&D lab, equipment, samples, trials, and documentation systems.
• Benchmark competitor products, track global trends, and propose new product opportunities.
• Coordinate product shelf-life studies, allergen assessments, and risk evaluations.
• Lead factory trials, prepare trial reports, and ensure successful handover to operations.
• Support customer presentations, product demonstrations, and technical training where required.
• Ensure all formulations adhere to internal standards, regulatory guidelines, and food safety requirements.

• Strong understanding of ingredients, functional properties, flavour systems, and processing technologies.
• Demonstrated ability to manage multiple R&D projects in a fast-paced environment.
• Familiarity with HACCP, ISO, FSSC, and regulatory labelling requirements.
• Acts with integrity, professionalism, and a strong sense of responsibility.
• Brings enthusiasm, drive, and a proactive approach to product development.
• Maintains high attention to detail, accuracy, and quality in formulations and documentation.
• Organised, disciplined, and consistent in trial planning, reporting, and follow-through.
• Collaborates well with colleagues across Production, Quality, Procurement, and Marketing.
• Calm under pressure, solutions-focused, and able to balance technical depth with practical decision making.
• Shows initiative, adaptability, creativity, and a continuous improvement mindset.

• Bachelor’s or Master’s degree in Food Science, Food Technology, Chemistry, or related field.
• Minimum 5 to 8 years’ hands-on experience in food product development.
• Experience in snacks, seasonings, spices, cereals, or similar FMCG categories is a strong advantage.