Breeding Specialist - Lettuce

BASF SE

2d • Onsite

About The Position

BASF is looking for a Breeding Specialist to join their Agricultural Solutions team for the BASF | Nunhems Vegetable Seeds business in Acampo, CA or Salinas, CA. BASF’s Agricultural Solutions division focuses on innovation, customer and partner connections, and integrating sustainability into business decisions to help farmers achieve optimal outcomes, balancing economic, environmental, and social value. The Breeding Specialist will support the Breeder in developing a commercial lettuce pipeline by conducting screening trials, evaluating, gathering data, selecting plants, and producing seed to develop superior varieties with desired performance.

Requirements

• Hold a BSc in horticulture, plant breeding, genetics, or a closely related field
• Have 1+ years’ experience in plant breeding or a related discipline
• Possess hands-on experience in field data collection and working in outdoor field conditions
• Have experience reviewing and interpreting trial data and preparing clear reports for stakeholders
• Demonstrate professional agronomic skills (crop-specific and general agronomy, pathology, crop management, nutrition, automation)
• Understand horticultural practices, genetics, experimental design, and basic statistical analysis
• Drive results and take personal ownership of decisions and outcomes
• Exhibit excellent organization, time management, accurate record-keeping, and attention to detail
• Thrive in a fast-paced environment and manage competing tasks independently
• Handle complexity by integrating data from diverse sources and weighing risks, benefits, and trade-offs
• Communicate effectively and collaborate across multiple teams and stakeholders
• Hold a valid driver’s license and be able to travel as required
• Are proficient with data management tools (data collection, uploading, processing) and Microsoft Office
• Speak English fluently
• Are able to travel up 20%, domestically and internationally, and regularly travel during the day to Salinas, CA.

Nice To Haves

• MSc preferred
• 3+ years experience preferred
• Bilingual English/Spanish preferred

Responsibilities

• Planning, organizing, coordinating, and executing selection, collection, and transportation of screening material, including selecting from screening trials per breeding direction
• Physically collecting plant material and overseeing transport for grow‑out after field evaluation and selection
• Coordinating and communicating selection and material movement schedules with the Farm Manager and providing technical guidance to meet production standards, timelines, and budgets
• Using breeding software to organize, enter, and validate trial data; analyzing results and preparing summary reports for stakeholders
• Ensuring data capture and storage meet guidelines and company protocols, including trial preparation, data entry, analysis, and report distribution
• Making proposals and drawing conclusions to support breeding program decisions at divisional and corporate levels
• Presenting data, conclusions, and recommendations at elevation meetings and ensuring timely reporting to stakeholders for decision making
• Planning, designing, organizing, and coordinating planting, evaluation/harvest, and post‑harvest activities for PD and screening trials as defined by the breeder
• Collecting, analyzing, interpreting, and documenting trait data from all trials and communicating findings to stakeholders
• Performing other duties as assigned to support business objectives

Benefits

• Flexible work arrangements whenever possible
• Highly competitive retirement savings plan with company match and investment options
• Well-being programs that include comprehensive mental health support for you and your household family members
• Family forming benefits (fertility, adoption and surrogacy reimbursement, maternity/parental leave, and more)
• Back-up child and elder care with discount programs for families of all ages and stages
• Mentoring and career development opportunities that allow you to share, learn, and thrive
• Matching gifts program that allows you to deepen the impact of your contributions to qualified charities.
• Employee crisis support for when the unexpected happens
• Access to our BASF wine cellar, employee discounts, and much more!

What This Job Offers

• Job Type: Full-time
• Career Level: Mid Level
• Number of Employees: 5,001-10,000 employees