Director of R&D – Pet Food Ingredients
Location: Italy (Onsite)
Role Overview
My client is seeking an experienced Director of R&D to lead innovation and product development across its pet food ingredient portfolio. This is a senior leadership role combining hands-on technical expertise, people leadership, and strategic input at European level.
The successful candidate will play a key role in shaping future product pipelines, supporting customer-specific formulation work, and contributing to M&A technical evaluations, while building and leading a high-performing R&D team in a newly established laboratory environment.
Key Responsibilities
* Lead and develop an R&D team, fostering a culture of innovation, collaboration, and scientific excellence
* Drive the development of new products across pet food applications
* Oversee the continuous improvement and optimisation of existing products, focusing on performance, palatability, stability, and cost efficiency
* Translate customer requirements into tailored formulations, working closely with commercial and technical stakeholders to deliver differentiated solutions
* Provide technical and formulation expertise to support customer projects and strategic partnerships
* Conduct technical due diligence and product analysis for potential M&A targets, assessing formulation robustness, scalability, and innovation potential
* Operate within and help shape workflows in a newly built laboratory, supporting method development, testing, and validation
* Act as a member of the European leadership team, contributing to R&D strategy, innovation roadmaps, and long-term growth plans across Europe
Candidate Profile
* 10–15 years' experience in R&D within ingredients, nutrition, or pet food/feed-related industries
* Master's degree or PhD in Animal Nutrition, Food Science, or a closely related discipline
* Proven experience working with palatants and/or antioxidants (pet food experience preferred but not mandatory)
* Demonstrated people leadership experience, including managing and developing technical teams
* Strong formulation mindset with the ability to link customer needs to commercially viable solutions
* Comfortable operating in a senior, cross-functional and international environment
* Business-professional English required (Italian advantageous but not essential)
Compensation & Benefits
* Competitive base salary
* Annual bonus
* Comprehensive insurance policies