Marlene Celis Email & Phone Number

Windermere, Florida, Us

• Work on Innovation and Renovation of salad kits and fruit snack products from inception to commercialization.• Provide project leadership in the development of new products eg. Superfoods Salads, Gourmet Bowls and Chiquita Apple Sweet Bites for healthy and indulgent snacking.• Improve existing products by optimizing product formulas or attributes. Involved in costing out the finished product, providing nutritional profiles and reviewing the product graphics for accuracy.• Develop supplier relationships to scope out new ingredients for the creation of new salad concepts.• Ensure accuracy of our finished Product Specifications and alignment with our manufacturing plants.• Conduct plant trials for the commercialization of new salad kits as well as testing and evaluation of new packaging films.

Veendam, Groningen, Nl

• Conducted customer visits to cheese manufacturers in Wisconsin and provided technical support and potato starch recommendations that could improve efficiencies and yields.• Did work with the Center for Dairy Research in Wisconsin to test several starch based solutions for processed cheese.• Provided Tech support for various food categories such as Dairy, Confectionary, Bakery, Sauces and Dressings.

Chicago, Il, Us

Dairy Technology, Cheese & Dairy• Process Cheese experience working with iconic brands like Velveeta and Kraft Singles.• Texture Systems Project Lead to develop unique texture systems for Processed Cheese products enabling cost savings of $20 MMM while making quality improvements which resulted in a Patent for the Improvement of Process Cheese Meltability, Firmness and Manufacture.• Leveraged my extensive knowledge of texturizers to deliver productivity savings across several cheese & dairy categories. • Scoped out new ingredients and technologies to fill productivity pipeline and drive innovation.• Project Leader on a Dairy Fat Sparing Project to lower saturated fats in processed cheese products while enabling cost savings. • Regularly interacted with suppliers and lead cross-functional teams to successfully move Projects forward. Teams consisted of R&D, Marketing, Regulatory, Sensory, Consumer Insights, QA and manufacturing.• Developed cheese spreads for the Value Consumer• Experience in product development work in the pilot plant and scaling up to commercialization.

Vevey, Ch

• Served as the Ingredient Specialist and primary supplier contact for all Vegetables, Grains, Starches, Hydrocolloids and Sweeteners for Nestle Prepared Frozen Foods• Provided ingredient recommendations and support to product developers working on Stouffers, Lean Cuisine, Hot Pockets and Buitoni products.• Worked with Procurement and Quality to approve new suppliers and address supplier issues.• Ran plant trials for ingredient approvals and for NPD (New Product Development) projects.• Worked with the Spec Author and our Suppliers to ensure the accuracy of Ingredient Specifications

Wayzata, Minnesota, Us

• Technical responsibility for Sauces and Dressings and the Convenience Foods Category• Conducted customer visits and gave technical presentations on Carbohydrate Chemistry• Technical lead for Cargills most successful Yogurt project for a major Yogurt manufacturer which resulted in improved texture and flavor release in the product. Solution was implemented in the US and in Europe.• Provided customers with technical expertise and support on starches and hydrocolloids for their application and manufacturing process• Product development experience with starches, starch derivatives and hydrocolloids in sauces, dairy, pie fillings, puddings, dry mixes, dressings, frozen entrees, canned products and bakery applications. • Excellent presentation skills acquired thru years of delivering customer technical presentations as well as putting together internal training seminars for Sales and distributors.

Master'S Degree, Food Science

Bachelor'S Degree, Biotechnology