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Zentis is Europe's number one fruit processing company and one of the leading brand manufacturers of jams, sweets, and custard-based desserts. The Company's North America operations are located in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania and Plymouth, Indiana, where we produce fruit and dairy preparations for a variety of customers including yogurt, ice cream and bakery manufacturers. We are currently looking to recruit an R&D Intern for our Philadelphia location. This is an on-site position.

Zentis is seeking a passionate and detail-oriented Research & Development Intern to join our R&D team for the summer of 2026. This internship offers a hands-on opportunity to contribute to the development of innovative fruit preparations, sauces, and popping boba products. The R&D intern will work closely with scientists and technicians in cooking experimental prototypes. They will also be regularly involved in running analytical tests on laboratory and production samples to confirm adherence to specifications. Additionally, they will have ownership of at least one project that they will lead with supervision from their manager. The R&D intern will also be responsible for organizing and keeping up with paperwork as it pertains to lab and trial cookings. The intern will have the opportunity to apply their knowledge of food chemistry, food processing and ingredient functionality to make a tangible impact on Zentis and its customers while gaining valuable internship experience.

Primary Responsibilities:

• Cooks lab samples based on project and department needs following laboratory standard operating procedures. Conducts and documents rudimentary product analyses (brix, pH, viscosity, etc) for all cookings both at time of cooking and after 24 hours. This may include preparing sample in application (such as mixed with yogurt).
• Communicates with other team members on daily project work. Collaborates with scientists and managers to prioritize deliverables effectively and troubleshoot technical issues that arise during cookings. Attend meetings as required to provide key updates on project deliverables. Collaborates cross functionally as needed with sales, regulatory affairs, quality assurance and other key functions.
• Maintains a clean, organized and professional laboratory setting. Calibrates and maintains analytical equipment on a daily basis. Assists with maintenance of laboratory stock of key materials and ingredients for R&D operations.
• Actively manages key facets of individual project with support from supervisor. Proactively plans tasks to meet targets and deadlines. Designs fundamentally sound experiments and collects robust data related to project. Summarizes key findings and effectively presents conclusions/next steps to key stakeholders.

Specific Experience and Key Knowledge Requirements:

• Actively pursuing or recently graduated with a degree in Food Science, Nutrition, Chemistry or a related field.
• Strong analytical and organizational skills.
• Ability to work independently and in a team setting.
• Familiarity with lab equipment and basic food testing procedures is a plus.
• Excellent written and verbal communication skills.
• Must have basic computer knowledge including Office365 applications such as Word and Excel. Must be comfortable working in a fast-paced environment and have strong communication skills. Must be able to stand for most of shift. Ability to work onsite in Philadelphia, PA or Plymouth, IN for an approximately 12-week duration.

EOE/M/F/H/V