Green & Black's is launching a Willy Wonka-style search for a taste assistant to help develop new chocolate bars and products.
A national cinema and press campaign kicks off the hunt this weekend, giving consumers nine weeks to apply for a "golden ticket" to work at Green & Black's "chocolate factory".
The successful applicant will join the company's head of taste Micah Carr-Hill who has spent 11 years creating all the brands' chocolate bars and products in sampling chocolate daily, travelling the world and developing new flavours.
Previous searches for the right candidate had failed, because traditional product developers did not tend to have the combination of "superior taste skills and culinary creativity" required, explained Carr-Hill.
"A food science route isn't critical, whereas that would normally be a must for a job like this," he said. "Getting someone for this role is incredibly difficult. For a lot of people in the food industry it's their job to produce food, but when they go home it isn't their main interest. It has to be someone who is passionate about food and the brand."
The right person could be a chef, chocolatier, wine expert or keen amateur cook, he said.
"It's just been me signing off the recipes and I need some help," said Carr-Hill. "I'm getting older and also we've got more and more innovation happening, and therefore an increased workload."
The Cadbury premium chocolate brand is hoping to reach almost one million people with a 60-second advert of Carr-Hill showing in Picturehouse cinemas, a press campaign and a tie-up with the LoveFilm DVD service.
Applicants should apply online, and a shortlist of 20 people will be invited to the Green & Black's UK headquarters in London and presented with a series of taste tests.
The final two applicants will then be asked to cook Carr-Hill a meal of their choice. Ultimately, the hope was to find a "real personality" to represent the brand, he said.
A national cinema and press campaign kicks off the hunt this weekend, giving consumers nine weeks to apply for a "golden ticket" to work at Green & Black's "chocolate factory".
The successful applicant will join the company's head of taste Micah Carr-Hill who has spent 11 years creating all the brands' chocolate bars and products in sampling chocolate daily, travelling the world and developing new flavours.
Previous searches for the right candidate had failed, because traditional product developers did not tend to have the combination of "superior taste skills and culinary creativity" required, explained Carr-Hill.
"A food science route isn't critical, whereas that would normally be a must for a job like this," he said. "Getting someone for this role is incredibly difficult. For a lot of people in the food industry it's their job to produce food, but when they go home it isn't their main interest. It has to be someone who is passionate about food and the brand."
The right person could be a chef, chocolatier, wine expert or keen amateur cook, he said.
"It's just been me signing off the recipes and I need some help," said Carr-Hill. "I'm getting older and also we've got more and more innovation happening, and therefore an increased workload."
The Cadbury premium chocolate brand is hoping to reach almost one million people with a 60-second advert of Carr-Hill showing in Picturehouse cinemas, a press campaign and a tie-up with the LoveFilm DVD service.
Applicants should apply online, and a shortlist of 20 people will be invited to the Green & Black's UK headquarters in London and presented with a series of taste tests.
The final two applicants will then be asked to cook Carr-Hill a meal of their choice. Ultimately, the hope was to find a "real personality" to represent the brand, he said.
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