Are you a scientist passionate about the development of futuristic food applications? Do you dream to explore novel food ingredients, testing new breakthrough technologies, developing new methods, and being involved in a wide range of cutting-edge projects? Then this position at the “Future Food Lab” at the Food Quality and Design group might be the place for you. You will have the possibility to help build up a laboratory dedicated to the development of truly innovative food concepts, starting from different kinds of cultivated cells, and support its future research projects. You are responsible for running the lab on a day-to-day basis and are a real team player.

WHAT ARE YOU GOING TO DO:

• explore, develop, and optimize processing techniques for novel food sources, aimed at building up the Future Food Lab;
• build knowledge on, and develop applications for, novel food proteins and other components in the field of cellular agriculture, precision fermentation, and mycoprotein structuring/texturization. Also, write scientific papers when applicable;
• take responsibility for the day-to-day functioning of laboratory facilities and maintenance of laboratory equipment, organizing, storing, and manipulating food samples and other chemicals. You solve technical problems independently;
• involvement in the coordination and execution of practical courses;
• support PhD students to work with new methods and equipment within the future food lab and be involved in their supervision;
• actively contribute to ongoing projects and collaborate with other scientists to set up instrumental analyses tailored to the needs of FQD and other groups of AFSG.

The research is embedded within the chair Food Quality and Design and member of the FQD team, which is led by Prof. Vincenzo Fogliano.

We ask

• you have an MSc degree in food technology or equivalent experience e.g. in a research institute or industrial research setting;
• you have a very strong engineering/design interest;
• you have some experience in working with food proteins and/or food processing techniques (extrusion, high pressure, thermal processing, etc);
• you can translate ideas into experimental design and develop new methods;
• you are proactive and willing to work on multidisciplinary projects with scientists with different backgrounds;
• you have effective professional communication skills in English.

We offer

Wageningen University & Research offers excellent terms of employment. A few highlights from our Collective Labour Agreement include:

• sabbatical leave, study leave, and partially paid parental leave;
• working hours that can be discussed and arranged so that they allow for the best possible work-life balance;
• the option to accrue additional compensation / holiday hours by working more, up to 40 hours per week;
• there is a strong focus on vitality and you can make use of the sports facilities available on campus for a small fee;
• a fixed December bonus of 8.3%;
• excellent pension scheme.

In addition to these first-rate employee benefits, you will of course receive a good salary. Depending on your experience, we offer a competitive gross salary of between €3.098,- and €4.670,- for a full-time working week of 38 hours, in accordance with the Collective Labour Agreements for Dutch Universities (CAO-NU) (scale 9 or 10).

Wageningen University & Research encourages internal advancement opportunities and mobility with an internal recruitment policy. There are plenty of options for personal initiative in a learning environment, and we provide excellent training opportunities. We are offering a unique position in an international environment with a pleasant and open working atmosphere.

You are going to work at the greenest and most innovative campus in Holland, and at a university that has been chosen as the “Best University” in the Netherlands for the 17^th consecutive time.

Coming from abroad
Wageningen University & Research is the university and research centre for life sciences. The themes we deal with are relevant to everyone around the world and Wageningen, therefore, has a large international community and a lot to offer to international employees. Applicants from abroad moving to the Netherlands may qualify for a special tax relief, known as the 30% ruling. Our team of advisors on Dutch immigration procedures will help you with the visa application procedures for yourself and, if applicable, for your family.

Feeling welcome also has everything to do with being well informed. Wageningen University & Research’s International Community page contains practical information about what we can do to support international employees and students coming to Wageningen. Furthermore, we can assist you with any additional advice and information about helping your partner to find a job, housing, schooling, and other issues.

More information

Do you want more information?
For more information about this position, please contact the chairholder prof. dr. Vincenzo Fogliano, by email: vincenzo.fogliano@wur.nl.
 
For more information about the procedure, please contact Emma Langelaan, HR adviser, by email: emma.langelaan@wur.nl

Do you want to apply?
You can apply directly using the apply button on the vacancy page on our website which will allow us to process your personal information with your approval.

Equal opportunities
Wageningen University & Research (WUR) employs a large number of people with very different backgrounds and qualities, who inspire and motivate each other. We want every talent to feel at home in our organisation and be offered the same career opportunities. We therefore especially welcome applications from people who are underrepresented at WUR. For more information please go to our inclusivity page. A good example of how WUR deals with inclusiveness can be read on the page working at WUR with a functional impairment.
 

We are

The mission of Wageningen University & Research is “To explore the potential of nature to improve the quality of life”. Under the banner Wageningen University & Research, Wageningen University and the specialised research institutes of the Wageningen Research Foundation have joined forces in contributing to finding solutions to important questions in the domain of healthy food and living environment. With its roughly 30 branches, 7,200 employees (6,400 fte) and 13,200 students and over 150.000 participants to WUR’s Life Long Learning, Wageningen University & Research is one of the leading organisations in its domain. The unique Wageningen approach lies in its integrated approach to issues and the collaboration between different disciplines.

Read the 5 reasons why your future colleagues enjoy working at WUR and watch this video to get an idea of our green campus!

We will recruit for the vacancy ourselves, so no employment agencies please. However, sharing in your network is appreciated.
 Apply now