Agricultural Product Development Associate

Based in Antrim/Portglenone

About the Doherty Group

The Doherty Group have been providing sustainable, locally sourced bedding products to farmers across Ireland for over 30 years. Now a leading supplier of Shavings and Sawdust, we are also the parent company of SUBLIME Dairy Cattle Bedding, an innovative blend designed to improve dairy performance. As we continue to grow, we're looking for someone to help us continue to lead the way in animal bedding innovation.

Job Purpose

This opportunity has been created in conjunction with The KTP programme and South West Regional College. You can read more about the KTP project using the application link.
The purpose of this project is ultimately to drive animal bedding innovation. It will primarily look at the agriculture sector but there is also potential to explore development within the pet sector too.
Sustainability will be a core focus within this project. We currently supply sustainable options to our customers but constantly strive to make further improvements to our range which will be greatly helped by the work you do.

What you'll be doing

You will assist in the development, implementation and monitoring of lab and field testing, assist in coming up with potential product improvements or entirely new product lines and work with the business to create a culture of innovation and lead the way in our sector.
You'll familiarise yourself with the agricultural industry and our competitors to ensure we stay on top of any developments both within Ireland and further afield.
Conduct on-farm demonstrations, workshops, discussion groups, etc., and write a scientific paper to publicise the product trial results and promote awareness of the products' benefits, including higher dairy cow health and welfare standards.

What we're looking for

Someone with a background in biological or biochemical science.
A creative thinker with a desire to innovate and make a difference.
Someone willing to travel across Ireland for the purpose of trialling and testing new innovations.
Someone confident in their ability to use trial and error to constantly improve products and processes.
Ideally we're looking for someone who has a background or knowledge of the agriculture sector, particularly dairy.
For a full and detailed job description please follow the application link.

Job Type: Temp to perm
Contract length: 24 months

Pay: £31,586.00-£35,235.00 per year

Benefits:
Company pension
Free parking
Health & wellbeing programme
On-site parking

Work Location: In person