Back to jobs
New

Sensory Technologist

Berkeley, CA
About us:
Based in Berkeley, CA, UPSIDE Foods grows meat, poultry, and seafood directly from real animal cells. These products are not vegan or vegetarian—they are delicious meat, made without the need to raise and slaughter billions of animals. In doing so, the company aims to address some of the most pressing environmental, animal welfare, and public health challenges, while still giving people the meat they love. 
 
Founded as the world’s first cultivated meat company in 2015, UPSIDE Foods (formerly Memphis Meats) has achieved numerous industry-defining milestones, including being the first company to produce multiple species of meat (beef, chicken, and duck) and to sell a cultivated meat product in the United States. The company believes that people shouldn’t have to choose between the foods they love and a thriving planet, and is working to build a better food system with access to delicious, humane, and sustainable meat, poultry, and seafood. 
 
UPSIDE Foods has won various industry awards, including New York Times’ Good Tech Awards, FastCo’s Next Big Thing in Tech and World Changing Ideas Awards, and the Best and Brightest Companies to Work For in the Nation by the National Association for Business Resources. UPSIDE Foods has raised a total of $608 million, including from the Abu Dhabi Growth Fund (ADG), Baillie Gifford, Bill Gates, Cargill, John Doerr, John Mackey, Kimbal and Christiana Musk, Norwest, Richard Branson, Softbank, Temasek, Threshold, Tyson Foods, and others.
 
About this job:
The Sensory Technologist will primarily be responsible for assisting in all Sensory led projects to make tastier meat.  We’re looking for someone who enjoys fast-paced growth, is comfortable with change, and is passionate about science, people and food. You should be able to prepare samples, evaluate prototypes, and collect data. This role will have an opportunity to work with different teams within UPSIDE. 
 
Responsibilities Include: 
  • Independently manages and executes planned sensory experiments by preparing incoming raw material/product, labeling, packaging, further processing and storage.
  • Using sensory software to field tests and collect data.
  • Label sample cups, set-up, clean-up, and serve for taste panels.  Comply with appropriate SOPs, established policies and procedures.
  • Maintain sensory training, project, laboratory, experimental, and quality testing and records.
  • Standardize, use and maintain any laboratory equipment. Prepare and ship samples for external analytical testing, when needed by the Sensory Team.
  • Ensure that all safety guidelines and procedures are followed as safety of our employees is a primary responsibility.
  • Summarizing and presenting results and recommendations to the larger team in an organized, concise, and logical manner, both verbally and visually.
  • Tasting and assessing a range of animal proteins.
  • Other tasks as assigned which may include cleaning product/equipment storage areas, shopping, packaging and shipping products. 
About You:
  • BS in Food Science or other applicable field, with 2+ years of relevant experience (or relevant internship experience). 
  • Experience in sensory research and/or sensory evaluation focused on sensory descriptive analysis preferred.
  • Strong verbal and written communication skills, including timely follow-up and commitment to deliverable, and openness to give and receive feedback.
  • Experience with SIMS, Compusense, XLSTAT a plus.
  • Strong ability to be flexible and collaborative when applicable.
  • Proven ability to present data, share data, share ideas.
  • Familiarity, experience, and a willingness to eat all meat-based products.
Who you’ll work with:
  • This role will partner with R&D, quality, regulatory, and production to develop and commercialize cultivated meat products. 
Key Contributions in First Year:
  • Assist with sensory panel training within different teams at Upside.
  • Assist with sample preparation, analysis, processing, packaging and storage for sensory projects.
  • Define, Develop, Deploy in the commercialization efforts of our first cultivated meat product launch.
Compensation Range: $70,000 - $90,000*
*Pay may vary depending on factors including job-related knowledge and skills.
 
UPSIDE Benefits!
  • Stock options for all full-time incoming team members!
  • 90-100% employer-paid healthcare premiums for team members (medical [including HSA and FSA], dental, and vision)
  • Pet insurance for your furry family members!
  • Unlimited PTO
  • Employee Engagement Council
  • Company-sponsored learning & development opportunities
 
UPSIDE Foods is an equal opportunity employer and we value diversity at our company. We do not discriminate on the basis of race, religion, color, national origin, gender, sexual orientation, age, marital status, veteran status, or disability status. Our company-wide mission is to create a product for everyone, so we are deeply committed to having teams and leaders that reflect this mission.

Apply for this job

*

indicates a required field

Resume/CV*

Accepted file types: pdf, doc, docx, txt, rtf

Select...
Select...

UPSIDE Custom Demographic Questions

At UPSIDE Foods, we value belonging and believe in fostering an environment where a diversity of perspectives can thrive. This core value is a pillar of our business and critical to our success. Your responses will be used (in aggregate only) to help us evaluate the diversity of our job applicant pool and how we can improve our efforts to attract a diverse range of candidates. Your responses will not be associated with your specific application and will not in any way be used in the hiring decision.

Select...
Select...
Select...
Select...
Select...
Select...

Voluntary Self-Identification

For government reporting purposes, we ask candidates to respond to the below self-identification survey. Completion of the form is entirely voluntary. Whatever your decision, it will not be considered in the hiring process or thereafter. Any information that you do provide will be recorded and maintained in a confidential file.

As set forth in UPSIDE Foods’s Equal Employment Opportunity policy, we do not discriminate on the basis of any protected group status under any applicable law.

Select...
Select...
Race & Ethnicity Definitions

If you believe you belong to any of the categories of protected veterans listed below, please indicate by making the appropriate selection. As a government contractor subject to the Vietnam Era Veterans Readjustment Assistance Act (VEVRAA), we request this information in order to measure the effectiveness of the outreach and positive recruitment efforts we undertake pursuant to VEVRAA. Classification of protected categories is as follows:

A "disabled veteran" is one of the following: a veteran of the U.S. military, ground, naval or air service who is entitled to compensation (or who but for the receipt of military retired pay would be entitled to compensation) under laws administered by the Secretary of Veterans Affairs; or a person who was discharged or released from active duty because of a service-connected disability.

A "recently separated veteran" means any veteran during the three-year period beginning on the date of such veteran's discharge or release from active duty in the U.S. military, ground, naval, or air service.

An "active duty wartime or campaign badge veteran" means a veteran who served on active duty in the U.S. military, ground, naval or air service during a war, or in a campaign or expedition for which a campaign badge has been authorized under the laws administered by the Department of Defense.

An "Armed forces service medal veteran" means a veteran who, while serving on active duty in the U.S. military, ground, naval or air service, participated in a United States military operation for which an Armed Forces service medal was awarded pursuant to Executive Order 12985.

Select...

Voluntary Self-Identification of Disability

Form CC-305
Page 1 of 1
OMB Control Number 1250-0005
Expires 04/30/2026

Why are you being asked to complete this form?

We are a federal contractor or subcontractor. The law requires us to provide equal employment opportunity to qualified people with disabilities. We have a goal of having at least 7% of our workers as people with disabilities. The law says we must measure our progress towards this goal. To do this, we must ask applicants and employees if they have a disability or have ever had one. People can become disabled, so we need to ask this question at least every five years.

Completing this form is voluntary, and we hope that you will choose to do so. Your answer is confidential. No one who makes hiring decisions will see it. Your decision to complete the form and your answer will not harm you in any way. If you want to learn more about the law or this form, visit the U.S. Department of Labor’s Office of Federal Contract Compliance Programs (OFCCP) website at www.dol.gov/ofccp.

How do you know if you have a disability?

A disability is a condition that substantially limits one or more of your “major life activities.” If you have or have ever had such a condition, you are a person with a disability. Disabilities include, but are not limited to:

  • Alcohol or other substance use disorder (not currently using drugs illegally)
  • Autoimmune disorder, for example, lupus, fibromyalgia, rheumatoid arthritis, HIV/AIDS
  • Blind or low vision
  • Cancer (past or present)
  • Cardiovascular or heart disease
  • Celiac disease
  • Cerebral palsy
  • Deaf or serious difficulty hearing
  • Diabetes
  • Disfigurement, for example, disfigurement caused by burns, wounds, accidents, or congenital disorders
  • Epilepsy or other seizure disorder
  • Gastrointestinal disorders, for example, Crohn's Disease, irritable bowel syndrome
  • Intellectual or developmental disability
  • Mental health conditions, for example, depression, bipolar disorder, anxiety disorder, schizophrenia, PTSD
  • Missing limbs or partially missing limbs
  • Mobility impairment, benefiting from the use of a wheelchair, scooter, walker, leg brace(s) and/or other supports
  • Nervous system condition, for example, migraine headaches, Parkinson’s disease, multiple sclerosis (MS)
  • Neurodivergence, for example, attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), autism spectrum disorder, dyslexia, dyspraxia, other learning disabilities
  • Partial or complete paralysis (any cause)
  • Pulmonary or respiratory conditions, for example, tuberculosis, asthma, emphysema
  • Short stature (dwarfism)
  • Traumatic brain injury
Select...

PUBLIC BURDEN STATEMENT: According to the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995 no persons are required to respond to a collection of information unless such collection displays a valid OMB control number. This survey should take about 5 minutes to complete.