Beck Flavors Internship Program
“All in all, Beck Flavors happened to be the perfect place to go and learn about the flavor industry because they were a smaller company where I have the opportunity to see start to finish from the client to the finished product.”
– Nick Viriyasiri
“I learned so much more than I expected. My internship at Beck helped me develop key skills I couldn’t get in the classroom. It also reinforced my decision to pursue a career in the flavor industry.”
– Adam Berge
Beck Flavors is a full-service flavor house that was established by Jacob Beck in 1904. They develop customized flavors in their laboratory and have a manufacturing facility on site. Beck Flavors is now run by President Matt Carr and Vice President Paul Tripi, the 4th generation of the Beck Family. The Beck Internship Program began in 2016 with the help of an ambitious University of Missouri student, Adam Berge.
Adam Berge was junior at the University of Missouri pursuing a degree in Food Science. He was a member of the Food Science Association, and was entered in a Beverage Flavoring Competition that Beck provided flavors for. After the competition, Adam inquired about a potential internship opportunity at Beck and was offered an internship in the summer of 2016. He assisted the flavor chemists, compounded flavors, fulfilled sample requests, learned how to match flavors, and worked with gas chromatography. “I learned quite a bit, and I was able to apply the knowledge I gained from my Food Science program as well.” Adam continued to visit Beck Flavors over school breaks and remained involved in their projects. After graduation, Adam was offered a full-time position as a Food Scientist. Almost 2 years later, Adam is now an application technologist and is grateful for the knowledge, opportunities, and relationships he has formed over the years at Beck.
Nick Viriyasiri was entering his senior year at University of Missouri St. Louis and pursuing a Chemistry degree. He had an interest in food science, so he contacted Beck Flavors in hopes of gaining an internship opportunity with Rick Gibson, a senior flavorist at Beck, whom Nick had shadowed in the past. After Beck extended him an internship offer, Nick was eager to begin working in the lab learning the flavor world. He learned to compound flavors, worked with the spray dryer and gas chromatography, and assisted with customer sample requests. Upon completion of his internship program, Nick was offered a full-time position at Beck and began in the spring of 2018 as a flavor scientist. Nick recalls his first experience in lab: “I was like a kid in a candy store. I wanted to open and smell everything. Seeing how things click and relate to school was awesome!”
The Beck Internship Program has since continued their relationship with University of Missouri and UMSL. They proudly offer internship opportunities to help students gain “real world” experience prior to graduation, offer office tours and lab visits for food science programs and assist with projects and competitions by offering flavor samples and knowledge from their lab experts.
For information on internship opportunities at Beck Flavors, please contact info@beckflavors.com or 314.878.7522.