This position will assist the Food Safety & Quality Assurance (FSQA) Manager with basic supervision and the direction of the FSQA staff as well as serving as backup for the FSQA Manager in all quality and food safety matters when the FSQA Manager is not present. The responsibilities include conducting quality audits, perform pre-operational inspections of equipment and processing areas, gather

and compile production samples, provide incoming ingredient inspections, monitor and ensure compliance with facility HACCP,SSOP, Quality and GMP programs. This position will work on multiple tasks at a time while making decisions independently and handle themselves calmly in stressful situations. There will be travel to cold storage facilities as well as suppliers to conduct ingredient inspections, supplier approvals, and other special projects.

Position Essential Duties and Responsibilities

• Complete all required activities as defined by the Food Safety & Quality Assurance Manager.
• Supervise staff of technicians to closely monitor product quality and food safety to ensure compliance to Ajinomoto Foods North America, Inc. (AFNA) standards.
• Assure adequate staffing by working with the FSQA Manager to evaluate new hires, and conducting performance evaluations of the FSQA staff.
• Develop thorough knowledge of AFNA FSQA and Safe Quality Foods (SQF) policies and effectively enforce them in a timely manner. Make recommendations regarding policy changes, additions and deletions.
• Develop, implement, manage programs and food safety staff that maintain and optimize the facilities quality and food safety focus.
• Under the direction of the FSQA Manager, develop, test, and implement quality operational procedures, practices, requirements and standards, according to scientifically sound protocols (e.g. SPC, HACCP, SOPs), to assure all products meet AFNA quality, food safety and regulatory requirements.
• Verify full implementation of the HACCP, SSOP and GMP requirements and programs, and modify them according to changes in regulatory requirements or needs of the facility.
• Will work with the FSQA Manager to develop and implement programs to monitor Customer Care consumer complaint reports and assist with the response to customer complaints, potential food borne illnesses, including the development of crisis plans, and the communication of these responses and plans to local management.
• Ensure compliance with all USDA and other applicable government statutes and regulations.
• Be available to work different shifts as required by the FSQA Manager.
• Knowledgeable of all purchased ingredients, their usage and ideal product conditions, including labeling, USDA regulatory compliance, and direct quality testing for adherence to standards.
• Ensure all outgoing and received products & ingredients meet AFNA specifications and quality parameters and are stored in a safe and sanitary manner, as well as special storage circumstances (frozen, refrigerated and dry warehousing).
• Ensure and maintain FIFO (First-In-First-Out) procedures are followed and that proper tracking capabilities are implemented as the products circulate throughout the facility.
• Knowledgeable of proper handling of all products and able to develop new policies and procedures to improve quality and operational efficiencies.
• Under the direction of the FSQA Manager, collaborate with other facility departmental managers and supervisors to ensure the training and enforcement of new procedures.
• Maintain quality checkpoints to ensure compliance to quality & food safety standards during production, storage and shipping.
• Ensure all product specifications are up to date, for both ingredients and packaging materials.
• Assure full knowledge of recall system, regulatory authority and crisis communications is required, along with minimum annual test of effectiveness and modification when necessary.
• Microbiological knowledge required, and ability to design and execute sanitation programs to manage and reduce microbiological risks. Knowledge of microbiological lab testing protocols, particularly the positive swab investigation procedure is required.
• Knowledgeable of standard packaging equipment, requirements, materials and procedures. Ensure all AFNA products are properly packaged, labeled with appropriate nutritional and USDA information, and date coded accordingly.

Position Qualifications

Must be able to read, write, speak and understand English. Must have clear understanding of HACCP, GMP, SSOP guidelines. Possess good working knowledge of microbiological testing procedures. Must have excellent communication and leadership skills. Must possess basic computer skills and knowledge with an emphasis on Microsoft programs.

Education:

• BS degree in Food Science, Meat Science, Microbiology, Biology or other science equivalent required.
• Certifications for HACCP and/or PCQI are required unless covered by another designee. Certifications through ASQ, SQF, GFSI and other professional quality associations are helpful.

Experience and Skills:

• Minimum 5 years Quality Control/Quality Assurance experience in USDA food manufacturing environment with at least half of experience being in a supervisory capacity is required. Frozen food experience preferred, but not mandatory.
• Ability to read, analyze and interpret general business periodicals, professional journals, technical procedures or government regulations. Ability to write reports, business correspondence and procedural manuals. Ability to effectively present information and respond to questions from groups of managers, clients, customers and the public.
• Bilingual (English/Spanish)

Pay Range: $75,000-$88,700 DOE + 15% annual bonus based on performance.