Senior Product Development Technologist – Supplements

Auckland | Full-Time | NPD Team

Senior Product Development Technologist – Lead Innovation in Nutraceuticals

Join a market-leading health and wellness business and take ownership of formulation development from concept to commercialisation. This is a senior, hands-on role driving innovation, scale-up, and technical excellence cross our growing supplements portfolio.

 About Us

Vitaco is the home of an outstanding collection of leading New Zealand and Australian supplements, health food, and sports nutrition brands. Our four power brands — Nutra-Life, Healtheries, Athena, and Musashi — have been empowering healthier lives across Australia, New Zealand, and more than 30 countries worldwide for over 100 years.

Health and wellness is our passion. From best-in-class manufacturing capabilities to our dedicated customer service teams, Vitaco employs over 650 people across New Zealand and Australia, all committed to delivering the highest quality products for consumers around the world.

Your Opportunity

Reporting to the Strategic Innovation Manager, this is a hands-on senior technical role where you will:

• Develop and maintain robust, commercially viable supplement formulations
• Lead projects from concept and bench trials through to full industrial scale-up
• Play a key role in bringing innovative nutraceutical products to market
• Provide technical leadership across formulation, compliance and manufacturing execution
• Mentor junior team members and strengthen capability within the NPD team
  

You’ll work closely with Marketing, Regulatory, QA, Procurement, Production and suppliers to ensure products are scientifically sound, commercially feasible and compliant across local and export markets. Experience mentoring others or exposure to team leadership will be highly regarded, as this role offers the opportunity to further grow your leadership capability within the NPD function

Key Responsibilities

• Develop and upgrade nutraceutical formulations aligned to the NPD plan
• Lead raw material specification, ingredient evaluation and RFP support
• Prepare accurate specifications, manufacturing instructions and nutritional documentation
• Provide technical input into marketing concepts to ensure regulatory and operational feasibility
• Review first production batches and resolve manufacturing variances
• Support regulatory approvals and ensure label compliance (local and export)
• Drive continuous improvement in formulation performance and manufacturing efficiency
• Stay current with emerging ingredient research and industry developments
• Contribute to strengthening team capability and adherence to Vitaco’s NPD and GATE processes

 About You

You are a technically strong formulation professional who thrives in a fast-paced manufacturing environment.

We are looking for:

• Tertiary qualification in Pharmaceutical Science, Chemistry or related discipline
• 7+ years’ experience in dietary supplement or pharmaceutical formulation
• Experience running solid dose trials and supporting scale-up into manufacturing
• Strong understanding of regulatory frameworks (TGA and international exposure advantageous)
• Experience preparing detailed manufacturing documentation
• Strong analytical skills, attention to detail and ability to manage multiple projects
• Clear communication skills and the ability to influence cross-functional stakeholders

A genuine interest in human nutrition and emerging ingredient science will set you apart.

Why Join Us?

At Vitaco, We Care, We Act, We Succeed.

You will work in an energising environment with passionate people who value collaboration, initiative, and shared success. Our people enjoy working with us because of our values, our products, and the positive impact we make every day.

Vitaco is growing — and it’s an exciting time to join us. Joining Vitaco now means being part of a dynamic, purpose-driven organisation where your contribution truly makes a difference and growth is part of the journey.

 What We Offer

• Competitive salary
• Flexible working arrangements
• Staff discounts on our products
• Access to discounted health insurance
• Subsidised onsite caf?
• A paid day off on your birthday
• Learning and wellness initiatives
• Access to naturopathic advice from our in-house experts
• A fun, supportive, and inclusive work environment

 
How to Apply

Applications will be reviewed as they are received, so we encourage you to apply early rather than waiting for the closing date.

To learn more about this opportunity or to apply online, please click Apply Online to be taken to our careers page.

Interested in other opportunities? Follow us on LinkedIn or set up a profile and job alert by visiting:
https://vitaco.careercentre.net.nz and clicking Register.

Agency notice: This recruitment assignment is being managed directly by Vitaco’s recruitment team. We will reach out to our preferred agency partners should we require additional talent options. Thank you for respecting this process.