Are you passionate about food and eager to work in a fast-paced, dynamic environment? Do you thrive on learning and constantly seek opportunities to improve? If so, would you love to apply these skills during a summer placement?
Leatherhead Food Research provides expertise and support to the global food and beverage sector. We provide practical solutions that cover all stages of a product’s life cycle from consumer insight and ingredient innovation to food safety consultancy and global regulatory advice. It is an exciting time for the business as we seek to grow within the UK and internationally.
The Opportunity
We are seeking energetic, hardworking, and hands-on individuals to join our world-class team for either 10- or 12-week summer placements in 2025.
As a successful candidate, you will have the chance to work on projects for a diverse range of food and beverage clients—from innovative startups to global industry leaders. You should have a genuine passion for cooking, a solid understanding of food safety, and the ability to apply analytical skills, flexibility, and technical expertise to exceed customer expectations and meet tight deadlines. An essential part of this process involves creating and verifying accurate, safe, and consumer-friendly cooking instructions for products.
You will work with a dedicated team in our state-of-the-art, UKAS-accredited kitchens, where you’ll be responsible for ensuring that cooking instructions are precise, safe, comply with guidelines and regulations, and are clear to consumers.
A Day in the Life
As a Summer Student, you will be part of our vibrant Cooking Instructions team, applying your food preparation and analytical skills to one or more projects. You’ll deepen your knowledge of cooking instructions, consumer packaging, and food safety while working on projects with fast turnarounds to meet product launch deadlines. This will require strong teamwork, communication, and attention to detail to deliver high-quality results on time.
Your tasks will include conducting time and temperature tests, performing quality and sensory assessments, and either verifying existing instructions or generating new ones for products entering the market.
You Will:
- Have a passion for pursuing a career in the food industry
- Be currently studying Food Science or a related field at university
- Have strong GCSE and A-level qualifications
- Possess broad analytical skills and a keen eye for detail
- Be enthusiastic, hands-on, and passionate about cooking
You Might Also Have (but it’s not essential):
- Previous catering experience
Location:
You will be based at our Great Burgh office in Epsom, Surrey.
