Lead Breeder

Field of Work:Breeding
Location:Mons-en-Pévèle Thriplow
Legal Entity:KWS UK Ltd.
Contract Type: Regular
Is Full Time:
Job ID: 16126

At KWS UK we are seeking on a full-time and permanent contract basis an experiencedLead Breeder Hybrid Barley for our hybrid barley breeding program located either at our station in Thriplow near Cambridge UK or Mons-en-Pevele near Lille FR.

You will be responsible for entering hybrid barley varieties into the European market particularly UK and France. This involves continuous strengthening our hybrid pools collaboration with seed production and commercial teams and well as implementing results from ongoing research activities.

This is high-profile position in one of the worlds leading barley breeding companies. Hybrid barley is a key strategic target for KWS and this position benefits from a high level of technical support from KWS HQ.

Your Task:

• Oversight of a hybrid barley breeding programme across UK and France with clear focus on variety development with full budget and organization responsibility
• Manage and develop junior breeders assistant breeders and technical staff
• Further develop male and female pools based on KWS existing breeding programmes in Europe
• Work collaboratively with KWS barley breeding and research teams to ensure full use of existing resources and knowledge
• Interact with seed production teams to develop cost-effective procedures
• Interact with commercial team for product identification test and market introduction

Your Profile:

• PhD in plant breeding or a related field with strong expertise in hybrid breeding methodology.
• Extensive experience in hybrid breeding within a commercial setting; cereal experience is an advantage.
• Proficiency in genomic tools and quantitative genetics as well as field testing and statistical analysis.
• Proven leadership experience in managing breeding teams.
• Excellent communication skills in English is mandatory; French or German is a plus.
• Strong organizational and time management skills entrepreneurial mindset and collaborative approach.
• Valid drivers license and willingness to travel frequently to field sites in the UK and France during the summer season.

Our Offer:

• 30 days of annual leave plus bank holidays
• Highly competitive Pension Scheme with 16% Company contribution and 1.2% minimum employee contribution
• Life Assurance of three times annual salary
• Income Protection Plan at 75% of salary for long-term illness and disability for a period of three years
• Private Health Care Plan
• Profit Related Bonus Scheme targeted at 15% of annual salary
• Membership of Lifestyles discount scheme
• Reduced diesel prices from the companys fuel pump
• A fun working environment where we take care of each other. We also organize social events such as a Summer Staff BBQ a Christmas party and charity fundraising events

Why Join Us
This is an exciting opportunity to lead a strategic breeding program in a global company committed to innovation. If you are passionate about hybrid breeding and ready to make an impact we would love to meet you.

Next Steps: Apply directly via our career site. If selected your first interview will be conducted by our recruitment team in Berlin via phone or Microsoft Teams.

About KWS

KWS is one of the worlds leading plant breeding companies. Nearly 5000 employees in more than 70 countries generated net sales of around 1.68 billion in the fiscal year 2023/2024. A company with a tradition of family ownership KWS has operated independently for almost 170 years. It focuses on plant breeding and the production and sale of seed for sugarbeet corn cereals vegetables oilseed rape and sunflower. KWS uses leading-edge plant breeding methods to continuously improve yield for farmers and plants resistance to diseases pests and abiotic stress. To that end the company invested more than 300 million last fiscal year in research and development. For more information: Follow us on LinkedIn at

Our data privacy policy for candidates is available on Please select the country where the job you applied for is posted in and if applicable the specific business unit.