We are seeking a Director of Quality Assurance to own the food safety and quality function for our entire operation. This is the senior-most quality role at the company, reporting directly to the President/CEO.
This is a working director role. You will personally hold the site's key food safety designations — SQF Practitioner, HACCP Coordinator, and Internal Auditor — supported by a team of QA technicians covering the production floor and a document control resource. You will write the procedures, conduct the monthly internal audits, sit across from the USDA Inspector-in-Charge, and stand in front of the certification body at audit time. We are looking for someone who wants that ownership rather than someone looking to manage it from a desk.
The right candidate is credible on the production floor and equally effective presenting a corrective action plan to a national brand's food safety team.
Key Responsibilities
Food Safety Systems
- Serve as SQF Practitioner; own, maintain, and continuously improve the SQF Food Safety and Quality Management System
- Lead the site's transition from SQF Edition 9 to Edition 10, including gap assessment, documentation revision, and staff readiness
- Serve as HACCP Coordinator: develop, validate, verify, and annually reassess all HACCP plans; lead the HACCP team
- Own SSOPs, prerequisite programs, and the site's environmental monitoring program, including RTE/Listeria control and corrective response to presumptive positives
- Direct the allergen control program in a multi-client, shared-facility environment, including validation of changeover and sanitation controls
- Maintain the Food Defense Plan and food fraud/vulnerability assessments
- Lead recall and traceability programs, including mock recall and crisis management exercises
Regulatory Compliance
- Serve as the primary liaison to USDA FSIS on-site inspection personnel and manage responses to Noncompliance Records
- Ensure compliance with 9 CFR Parts 416, 417, 424, and 430; applicable FDA requirements under 21 CFR Part 117 for non-amenable products; and NYS Department of Agriculture and Markets requirements
- Review and approve product labeling for regulatory accuracy, including ingredient statements, allergen declarations, nutrition facts, and claims
- Maintain compliance documentation for cold storage and 3PL operations
Audit and Customer Management
- Serve as Internal Auditor: plan and personally conduct monthly internal audits across the facility, and drive closure of findings through effective root cause analysis and corrective/preventive action
- Host and lead all third-party, regulatory, customer, and certification body audits
- Serve as the quality point of contact for co-manufacturing clients: complete customer quality questionnaires, negotiate quality agreements and specifications, and manage customer complaints and investigations
- Own the approved supplier program, including supplier approval, ingredient specification review, COA management, and supplier corrective action
Leadership and Operations Support
- Hire, lead, develop, and hold accountable a team of QA technicians performing daily floor verification — CCP monitoring checks, pre-operational inspections, GMP observations, sampling, and production record review — plus document control staff
- Set technician priorities and schedules, review their records for completeness and accuracy, and build bench strength through cross-training
- Direct the GMP and food safety training program for a bilingual production workforce
- Own document control, including the master document register, revision control, and record retention
- Partner with Operations, Culinary, and R&D on new product commercialization, process validation, thermal processing, shelf-life studies, and first-production runs
- Advance the site's food safety culture program and report food safety performance to senior management
Required Qualifications
- Bachelor's degree in Food Science, Microbiology, Biology, Animal Science, or a related technical discipline
- 7+ years of progressive quality assurance experience in food manufacturing, including direct responsibility for a site-level food safety system
- Direct experience in a USDA FSIS continuous-inspection facility
- Demonstrated experience authoring, validating, and reassessing HACCP plans
- Hands-on experience conducting internal audits against a GFSI-benchmarked standard (SQF strongly preferred; BRCGS or FSSC 22000 considered)
- Demonstrated track record hosting regulatory and third-party certification audits with strong outcomes
- Working knowledge of thermal processing, cook/chill, and frozen food safety principles
- Strong technical writing skills; able to independently author procedures, validations, investigations, and customer correspondence
Certifications
The following are required to perform the role. Candidates who already hold them are preferred, but we will sponsor and support completion after hire for a candidate who brings the underlying experience:
- Accredited HACCP certification (IHA, AIB, or equivalent)
- SQF Practitioner registration
- SQF internal auditor or lead auditor training
- PCQI certification
Preferred Qualifications
- Experience in co-manufacturing or contract manufacturing serving multiple branded clients
- Bilingual English/Spanish
- Experience with RTE products and post-lethality exposed process controls
- Familiarity with cold chain and warehousing compliance
Work Environment and Physical Requirements
This is an on-site role based at our Elmsford, NY facility. The position requires regular time in refrigerated and frozen production and storage environments (-10°F to 40°F), standing and walking for extended periods, and occasional lifting up to 40 pounds. Personal protective equipment and GMP compliance are required in all production areas. Occasional early-morning, evening, or weekend availability is required to support production schedules, audits, and food safety events.
Pay: $90,000.00 - $120,000.00 per year
Benefits:
- Health insurance
- Paid time off
Work Location: In person
