Role: Junior Technical Manager
Location: Henley-on-Thames
Job Type: Full-time | Hybrid (2 days in office per week)

At Ella’s Kitchen, we believe the best food for little people starts with the highest standards of quality, safety and care. We’re looking for a Junior Technical Manager to join our Technical & R&D team, supporting our Senior Technical Manager to ensure our products meet all regulatory, safety and quality requirements.

This is an exciting opportunity for someone early in their technical career who wants hands-on experience working with manufacturers, new product development and food safety compliance.

What you’ll be doing

Co-manufacturer relationships

• Build and manage a strong working relationship with one of Ella’s Kitchen’s co-manufacturers
• Support EPD (existing product development) and NPD (new product development) projects
• Embed Ella’s Kitchen ways of working into the manufacturing process
• Identify risks, improvement opportunities and preventative measures across manufacturing
• Manage recipe systems, product specifications and QAS documentation

Quality & continuous improvement

• Investigate finished product quality or technical issues
• Raise and manage non-conformances and implement corrective actions
• Work with Operations and NPD teams to review costs and identify savings opportunities
• Help develop and implement plans to deliver efficiencies and incentives

Regulatory & compliance

• Support compliance of all finished goods with relevant food safety, quality and legal requirements
• Ensure packaging technical information is accurate and compliant
• Contribute to technical standards including EU Organic and BRC
• Lead the annual organic audit

What we’re looking for

Essential

• Degree in Food Science, Food Technology or Biology
• Strong working knowledge of MS Excel, PowerPoint and Word
• High attention to detail with excellent organisation skills
• Self-motivated with a proactive approach to problem solving

What you’ll need

• Willingness to travel to UK and overseas suppliers
• Able to work in our Henley-on-Thames office 2 days per week

Why join Ella’s Kitchen?

You’ll be joining a purpose-driven brand that cares deeply about quality, sustainability and doing the right thing for families. You’ll gain real exposure to manufacturing, audits, NPD and supplier management - making this an ideal stepping stone into a long-term career in food technical or quality.

What we can offer you

• Competitive salary / rate of pay
• Hybrid Working Option
• 25 days annual leave, plus 8 Bank Holiday
• Option to purchase additional annual leave
• A day off work to support our charity partners
• Flexible working options
• Pension
• Medical benefit
• And access to a HUB that offers many discounts from a range of suppliers and retailers

About The Hain Celestial Group

Hain Celestial Group is a leading health and wellness company whose purpose is to inspire healthier living for people, communities and the planet through better-for-you brands. For more than 30 years, our portfolio of beloved brands has intentionally focused on delivering nutrition and well-being that positively impacts today and tomorrow. Headquartered in Hoboken, N.J., Hain Celestial’s products across snacks, baby/kids, beverages, meal preparation, and personal care, are marketed and sold in over 75 countries around the world. Our leading brands include Garden Veggie™ snacks, Terra® chips, Garden of Eatin’® snacks, Earth’s Best® and Ella’s Kitchen® baby and kids foods, Celestial Seasonings® teas, Joya® and Natumi® plant-based beverages, Greek Gods® yogurt, Cully & Sully®, Imagine® and New Covent Garden® soups, Yves® and Linda McCartney’s® (under license) meat-free, and Alba Botanica® natural sun care, among others.

Hain Celestial Group UK

In the UK,  Hain is one of the UK's leading food companies. We create food and drink products with natural goodness at their core. We're the business behind a host of household brands - Hartley's jams and jellies, Sun-Pat peanut butters, New Covent Garden Soup Co., Linda McCartney's meat free food, and Yorkshire Provender to name a few. Nearly half of our business is private label - we create quality freshly prepared fruit and juices, desserts, soups, sweet spreads and meat free products for our retail partners.

Over our sites up and down the UK, we employ circa 1,200 people in roles within Production, Supply Chain, Product Development, Sales and Marketing, and through to our Finance, HR, IT and beyond. Each of our colleagues is vital to our continued success. That's why we target the best talent, and help to develop them through the ranks.  

 Our Values

Own It – I am empowered and accountable for improving Hain’s business results and impact

Win Together – I collaborate with others to grow, deliver and celebrate success.

Foster Inclusion – I create an environment where everyone feels welcome, respected and valued for their uniqueness.

Be Curious – I explore ideas & insights with a growth mindset.

Our Purpose

To inspire healthier living for people, communities & the planet through better-for-you brands

Our Mission

To build purpose-driven brands that make healthier living more attainable by empowering our people, engaging our partners, and living our lives.

If you need reasonable adjustments made to the recruitment process, please let us know so we can support you in the right way.

If Hain Celestial sounds like the company you'd like to contribute your energy and enthusiasm towards, and come on an exciting journey with us, then we can't wait to hear from you!