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Food Safety & Quality Manager, Botkins

Agrana Fruit is proud to be a Great Place to Work® Certified™ organization, reflecting our commitment to a high‑trust, collaborative, and employee‑focused culture. Agrana Fruit is the world market leader and leading ingredient supplier of fruit preparations in one of the fastest-growing segments in the food industry. We specialize in the custom development of stabilized fruit preparations for the refrigerated & frozen dairy, bakery, and food service industries. Every 3rd cup of yogurt worldwide contains fruit from Agrana!

Agrana Fruit is seeking a Food Safety & Quality Manager to manage quality control staff, for all internal auditing programs, as well as 3rd party audit compliance, compliance with all company food safety & quality programs and procedures. This position will also supervise the maintenance of all plant food safety & quality documentation systems, development and maintenance of food safety & quality training programs for entire plant, and overall food safety & quality leadership to ensure the safe and efficient manufacturing of the highest quality products to meet customer specifications.

Key responsibilities:

• Maintain the Food Safety & Quality Management Systems (FSQMS) to ensure compliance with the appropriate certification standards (i.e. FSSC 22000, ISO 9001, etc.) and plant FSQ performance to fulfil established KPI targets
• Manage the FSQMS to ensure the day-to-day activities are completed and aligned with the AGRANA FSQ strategies.
• Under the direction of the Plant Manager and US Head of Food Safety & Quality assist with the development of the FSQ strategies to ensure alignment with overall AGRANA direction.
• Manage and maintain a highly trained quality assurance staff to confirm product testing is completed promptly and accurately to ensure only the highest quality products are shipped to the customer.
• Conduct the bi-annual review of the lab personnel and approve the reviews for all quality assurance staff. Based on the evaluations, coordinate and monitor follow up training to ensure compliance with standard operating procedures, safety and quality policies. Establish programs to help the individual achieve the highest performance growth.
• Control and update all Botkins procedures including food safety & quality procedures, standard operating procedures and work instructions so that all personnel will know and follow the correct established processes. Correct procedures are critical for successful training.
• Prepare for and participate in customer and regulatory audits at the Botkins Plant to ensure superior audit scores and compliance with all regulatory and customer requirements. Superior audits help maintain or gain approved supplier status with customers. Review and document completion of any corrective and preventative actions along with providing follow-up with customers and regulatory agencies as needed.
• Facilitate the plant food safety and quality team. Coordinate troubleshooting efforts and investigations to determine root cause when personnel or process deviations or failures occur. Subsequently, identify and implement necessary corrective actions to prevent recurrence and provide full documentation of investigation and corrective actions accomplished.
• Assist New Product Development (NPD) on new commercialized products so that quality and related customer issues can be resolved to ensure a successful product launch for Agrana and the customer. Monitor ongoing product performance through statistical process control (SPC) trending and provide recommendations for product adjustments to NPD based on analysis.
• Communicate plant food safety & quality information on a weekly, monthly, quarterly and annual basis. Through reports, meetings and presentations provide plant management and corporate staff an accurate view of plant performance through analysis of data trending. This information measures improvement and completion of goals.
• Oversee and investigate all Botkins customer returns or complaints to ensure accurate determination of root cause and implementation of any needed corrective actions. Maintain contact with the customer for resolution of the issues.
• Oversee the implementation of Food Manufacturing Practices and associated FSMS programs to ensure production of safe and wholesome products.

Core competencies:

• Strong communication skills –written and verbal
• Strong computer skills proficient at Microsoft Excel, Word and PowerPoint, SAP
• Strong working knowledge of Food Manufacturing Practices, HACCP, basic quality testing and safety issues
• Previous experience with GFSI certification systems (ISO 22000/FSSC Certification experience a strong preference)

Job requirements:

• B. S. in Food Science, Biology, or applicable science field
• Minimum five years supervisory experience in a food manufacturing plan
• Experience with quality management systems

Agrana Fruit offers a competitive salary and a comprehensive benefits package that supports employee wellness and well-being. To apply, please submit an application or contact Rachel.Finkelstein@agrana.com