Head of Menu Development

About Foodfolk Australia

Foodfolk Australia is a leading provider of catering services to the Perth Airport precinct, we’re all about generous servings of fresh, natural produce, prepared by folks who love to cook — not by machines. We believe that food is more than fuel; it’s packed with emotion, culture, discovery, and desire.

About the Role

The Head of Menu Development provides strategic leadership across Foodfolk’s culinary function, shaping menu direction, driving operational excellence, and delivering innovative, profitable, and high-quality culinary solutions across inflight and contract manufacturing operations.

Qualifications & Experience

Essential

• Tertiary qualification in Food Science, Nutrition, Culinary Arts, Hospitality Management or a related discipline, or equivalent relevant industry experience.
• Extensive leadership experience in menu development, food innovation, product development or a similar function, including leading and developing professional, culinary or technical teams.
• Demonstrated experience developing and commercialising menu or food products within high-volume food manufacturing, contract catering, retail food, hospitality or comparable production environments.
• Proven ability to manage the end-to-end menu lifecycle, including concept development, costing, trials, customer approval, production implementation and post-launch review.
• Strong commercial and operational acumen, including food-cost management, margin optimisation, menu engineering, production scalability and continuous improvement initiatives.
• Comprehensive knowledge of food safety, HACCP, allergen management, quality systems and stakeholder management, with the ability to influence customers, suppliers and cross-functional teams.

Desirable

• Experience within aviation or airline catering, including an understanding of airline service models, operational constraints and customer-specific requirements.
• Experience supporting tender submissions, customer presentations and new business opportunities.
• Experience developing menus across multiple customer segments, dietary requirements, cultural preferences or service classes.
• Experience using customer, operational and commercial data to drive menu performance, innovation and continuous improvement.
• Formal qualifications or certifications in Project Management, Leadership, Change Management, Lean Six Sigma or Continuous Improvement.
• Certificate IV in Training and Assessment, or experience delivering menu, culinary or product implementation training to operational teams.

Why work for Foodfolk Australia?

At Foodfolk, we are committed to creating a supportive work environment that encourages camaraderie and teamwork, allowing you to cultivate positive relationships across all levels and reach your full potential.

Values We Live By:

• 🤝 Camaraderie: We're all in this together! Join a close-knit and inclusive team that looks out for each other.
• 😄 Optimism: We bring a positive frame of mind to every challenge and always aim to do one better.
• 🔄 Responsive: In a fast-moving industry, we bring flexibility and problem-solving to the table to deliver at pace.
• 🌐 Ethical: We're committed to safety and quality in everything we do, from food to people, community, and the environment.

We also offer benefits such as:

• Close-knit family working environment
• Free Onsite Parking
• Employee Assistance Program

So, come join the Foodfolk Family! We strongly encourage those from First Nations, Torres Strait islands, and all cultures and identities to apply and join our family.