Leen Al Khair Trading Co. — an expanding Saudi food manufacturing company — is seeking a passionate and experienced Senior R&D & Innovation Manager in Riyadh to lead the development of innovative, high-quality food products for the Saudi and GCC markets. From sauces and vegetable pastes to marinades, condiments, and ready-to-cook products — you will drive the full innovation cycle from concept and recipe development through prototype trials, scale-up, and commercial launch.
About Leen Al Khair Trading Co. — Saudi Food Innovation Leader
Company: Leen Al Khair Trading Co. — expanding food manufacturing business in Saudi Arabia
Product Portfolio: Sauces, vegetable pastes, marinades, condiments, and ready-to-cook food products
Market Focus: Saudi Arabian and broader GCC regional food markets
Current Products: Garlic paste, ginger paste, chili paste, onion paste, and other vegetable-based products
Compliance Standards: SFDA, HACCP, ISO 22000, and international food safety frameworks
Innovation Scope — What You Will Lead
New SKU Development: Innovative new products across sauces, pastes, marinades, condiments, and ready-to-cook ranges
Recipe Creation: Original formulations from concept through commercial production and market launch
Prototype Trials: Hands-on kitchen and pilot plant testing — this role is built for a true food creator
Existing Product Improvement: Enhance quality, taste, texture, aroma, consistency, and shelf life of current portfolio
Scale-Up: Take products from lab and kitchen trials to full-scale manufacturing with consistency and commercial viability
Position Overview
This Senior R&D & Innovation Manager role at Leen Al Khair in Riyadh is a creative and commercially strategic leadership position for an experienced food innovator who loves to cook, experiment, and develop products that consumers genuinely enjoy. You will build and lead the R&D function for a growing Saudi food manufacturer — taking full ownership of new product development across the company’s sauces, pastes, condiments, marinades, and ready-to-cook categories. From hands-on kitchen prototyping and sensory evaluations to competitor benchmarking and full commercial scale-up, this role places you at the heart of Leen Al Khair’s growth strategy for the Saudi and GCC food markets. The ideal candidate brings deep food science expertise, proven commercial NPD success, and the energy and creativity to drive genuine food innovation in one of the region’s most exciting and fast-growing FMCG categories.
Why This Role Matters: As Senior R&D & Innovation Manager at Leen Al Khair in Riyadh, you will define the next generation of food products for the Saudi and GCC markets — developing original recipes and formulations, leading hands-on pilot plant trials, scaling successful innovations to full commercial manufacturing, ensuring SFDA and ISO 22000 compliance across all products, and building a senior food innovation career at the forefront of Saudi Arabia’s rapidly growing, Vision 2030-driven food manufacturing sector.
Key Responsibilities
New Product Development & SKU Innovation
- Develop and successfully launch innovative new SKUs across the full sauces, vegetable pastes, marinades, condiments, and ready-to-cook product categories for Saudi and GCC markets
- Create original, commercially viable recipes and formulations — taking each product from initial concept brief through ingredient sourcing, development, trialling, and approval for commercial production
- Research global food trends, emerging ingredient technologies, and consumer preference data to continuously identify and develop new product opportunities aligned with the Saudi and GCC market landscape
- Lead competitor benchmarking exercises and sensory evaluation programs to assess product positioning and guide differentiation strategies for new and existing Leen Al Khair products
Recipe Development, Prototyping & Pilot Plant Trials
- Prepare, cook, and refine prototype recipes through hands-on kitchen and pilot plant trials — personally driving the formulation development process with creativity, technical rigour, and commercial awareness
- Experiment with ingredient combinations, process parameters, texture profiles, flavour systems, and aroma compounds to achieve the precise taste, quality, and consistency required for each new product
- Conduct comprehensive sensory evaluations and structured consumer testing programs to validate product acceptance and guide iterative formulation improvements before manufacturing scale-up
- Document all development trials, formulation specifications, test results, and technical data accurately — building a robust R&D knowledge base that supports future product development and manufacturing consistency
Existing Product Improvement & Optimisation
- Continuously improve existing products — including garlic paste, ginger paste, chili paste, onion paste, and other vegetable-based product lines — enhancing quality, taste, texture, aroma, consistency, and shelf life
- Optimise formulations to improve production efficiency, raw material cost efficiency, and overall product profitability while rigorously maintaining the premium quality that Leen Al Khair’s customers expect
- Conduct shelf life studies, stability testing, and packaging compatibility evaluations to ensure all products perform consistently throughout their full intended commercial life cycle
- Manage ingredient functionality assessments and process parameter studies to identify opportunities for quality improvement and cost optimisation across the existing product portfolio
Scale-Up, Commercialisation & Cross-Functional Collaboration
- Scale all successfully trialled products from laboratory and kitchen-level development to full-scale commercial manufacturing — ensuring reproducible quality, process stability, and compliance at production volumes
- Collaborate closely with Production, Quality, Procurement, Sales, and Marketing teams throughout the NPD process to ensure successful, on-time product launches that meet commercial and customer requirements
- Lead and manage the full NPD project pipeline — from initial brief through development milestones, factory trials, regulatory approval, and final commercial launch — with clear timelines and accountability
- Ensure all new and improved products fully comply with SFDA regulations, HACCP principles, ISO 22000 standards, and applicable international food safety and labelling requirements throughout development
Qualifications & Requirements
Education
- Bachelor’s or Master’s degree in Food Science, Food Technology, Food Engineering, Nutrition, or a closely related technical discipline from a recognised university
- A Master’s degree specialising in food formulation, flavour science, or product development is a significant advantage for senior-level candidates
Experience Requirements
- Minimum 8 years of proven, hands-on experience in food product development and innovation — with a strong portfolio of commercially launched food products
- Demonstrated, specific experience developing sauces, vegetable pastes, condiments, marinades, or ready-to-cook food products — direct category experience is essential for this role
- Strong, proven expertise in recipe development, food formulation, ingredient functionality, shelf-life studies, sensory evaluation, and manufacturing process optimisation
- Demonstrated commercial success in launching new food products from development stage through to full market availability — a track record of NPD wins is a key selection criterion
Technical & Regulatory Knowledge
- In-depth knowledge of SFDA (Saudi Food and Drug Authority) food regulations, HACCP principles, and ISO 22000 food safety management system requirements
- Strong understanding of ingredient functionality, food chemistry, preservation technologies, and texture and stability management in sauce and paste product categories
- Fluency in English — written and spoken — is required for technical documentation and international supplier communication. Arabic language skills are an advantage in this Saudi market role
Leadership & Personal Competencies
- Strong leadership, communication, and cross-functional project management skills — capable of driving NPD projects to completion while coordinating multiple internal and external stakeholders
- Genuine passion for food — a creative, hands-on innovator who enjoys working in the kitchen and pilot plant, experimenting with flavours, and transforming food concepts into products customers love
- Commercial mindset — able to balance creative food innovation with the commercial realities of cost management, scalability, and market positioning in the Saudi and GCC food landscape
How to Apply
Send your CV to: Info@leenalkhair.com
Subject Line: Senior R&D & Innovation Manager – Sauces, Pastes & Ready-to-Cook Products
Position Based In: Riyadh, Saudi Arabia
About Leen Al Khair Trading Co. & Saudi Arabia Food Innovation
Leen Al Khair Trading Co. is an expanding Saudi food manufacturing business with a focused portfolio of vegetable pastes, sauces, condiments, marinades, and ready-to-cook products designed for the Saudi and GCC consumer market. As Saudi Arabia’s food manufacturing sector accelerates under Vision 2030 — with significant investment flowing into domestic food production, import substitution, and value-added food processing — companies like Leen Al Khair are at the forefront of building genuinely innovative, locally manufactured food brands that meet the evolving tastes and demands of Saudi and Gulf consumers.
For experienced Senior R&D and Innovation Managers, Saudi Arabia’s food industry represents one of the most exciting and commercially rewarding opportunities in the entire MENA region right now. The demand for high-quality, locally developed sauces, pastes, and ready-to-cook products is growing rapidly — and organisations with the R&D capability to innovate faster and better than the competition are positioned to capture significant market share in a sector that is transforming at extraordinary pace.
Career Excellence: Join Leen Al Khair Trading Co. in Riyadh as their Senior R&D & Innovation Manager — where your food science expertise, creative formulation skills, and commercial innovation track record will shape the next generation of Saudi-made food products and drive real business growth across one of the GCC’s most dynamic and rapidly expanding FMCG categories.
Who Should Apply?
- Senior Food Innovation Managers: With 8+ years of sauce, paste, condiment, or ready-to-cook NPD experience and a proven track record of commercially successful product launches
- Food Scientists & Technologists: Holding a Food Science or Food Technology degree and deep hands-on expertise in formulation development, sensory evaluation, and scale-up processes
- SFDA & ISO 22000 Compliant Professionals: With direct experience managing product development within Saudi Arabia’s regulatory framework or equivalent international food safety standards
- Hands-On R&D Leaders: Who genuinely love cooking, prototyping, and experimenting in the kitchen and pilot plant — not just managing teams but personally driving product innovation
- GCC Food Industry Professionals: Based in Saudi Arabia or willing to relocate to Riyadh, with experience developing food products for Saudi, Gulf, or broader MENA regional consumer markets
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