“In 2006, I was searching for a fresh, pre-made soup in my local grocery store. I chose a refrigerated soup, but felt a chill as I read the ingredient list: stabilizers, preservatives, flavor enhancers, emulsifiers and artificial ingredients. I was shocked. This wasn’t the simple, nourishing, homemade soup I grew up eating. How did we get so far away from real soup? How hard could it be to make soup with all organic ingredients? I started cooking for family and friends to recreate the recipes we remembered and in 2008 my efforts became Boulder Organic Foods. Since then, our scratch-made organic and gluten-free recipes have put real soup back on the table for families nationwide.”

- Kate Brown, Founder

Title:                 Manager, Quality and Food Safety

Reports To:      Operations Manager

FSLA Status:     Exempt/Salaried

Comp               65k-85k DOE

Location:          Niwot, CO

Position Summary:

This role provides overall direction, development, maintenance, training, certification auditing, verification, and validation for the Boulder Organic Foods, LLC Food Safety and Quality Plans. This role serves as the SQF Practitioner as well as the company point of contact for the FDA, USDA, State of Colorado Health Department, SQF, Organic, and Gluten-Free Certification Bodies. 

 Position Responsibilities:

• Responsible for the consistent quality and food safety of all food products produced by Boulder Organic Foods LLC.
• Serves as the company contact for all governmental regulatory agencies with respect to food safety/quality and maintains compliance with all applicable legislation.
• Responsible for development and oversight of FDA Food Safety and USDA HACCP Plans.
• Authoring and development of the company SQF System Food Safety and Quality Plans and the associated Policies, Prerequisite Programs, Standard Operating Procedures, Work Instructions, Logs and Forms.
• Maintaining compliance and certification for the SQF System, The National Organic, and Gluten-Free programs. Conducts internal audits and arranges third party auditing to demonstrate compliance to certification guidelines.
• Training of all employees on the SQF System as noted in the Training Needs Analysis.
• Serves as SQF Practitioner and HACCP Coordinator.
• Provides scientific analysis of products and processes to improve product quality and consistency as well as improvement of the SQF System.
• Verifies and Validates the SQF System as a whole, and makes necessary correction or changes as needed.
• This position is supported by a backup SQF Practitioner, the Operations Manager.

Knowledge, Skills & Abilities:

• Advanced working knowledge of Microbiology and Chemistry and their application as they relate to Food Safety and Quality.
• Ability to problem solve and create food safety and quality processes and corrective actions
• Initiative — ability to work independently; ensure responsive timely follow-up; meeting of deadlines; demonstrate a sense of urgency; ability to prioritize; organizational skills.
• Excellent Communication Skills — efficient and effective oral and written communication skills; ability to communicate at all levels of the organization; builds and maintains strong relationships with peers.
• Strong teamwork skills and ability to foster a positive and productive environment.
• Must be able to work a flexible schedule that fluctuates in response to customer demand.
• Commitment to company values.

 Food Safety and Quality Responsibilities:

• Oversees the continuous improvement of Food Safety and Quality Plans
• Prerequisite Programs: GMPs, Allergen Management, Crisis Management, Sanitation, Facility and Grounds, Management of Pests and Vermin, Storage of Hazardous Chemicals, Calibration, Label Review, Control of Foreign Matter, Water Supply, Shipping and Receiving, Complaint Management, Product Trace & Withdrawal, and Training

 Education/Experience Desired:

• Bachelor’s Degree in Microbiology, Food Science or equivalent.
• Minimum 5 years of experience in food production plant operations; Cook/Chill experience a major plus.
• Proficient with general business and manufacturing software including MS Office and working knowledge of ERP systems a plus.
• Proven track record of improved results in the areas of quality, safety, service, and cost.
• Certified HACCP training required. Implementing SQF Systems training and examination with passing score required. Working knowledge of GMP, HACCP, and SQF Food Safety and Quality codes. Experience in an SQF facility preferred.
• Have an understanding of the requirements to implement and maintain SQF systems at Level 3 for all products and facilities covered in the company’s scope of certification.
• Experience with government regulatory requirements in the processing of food and ability to work with regulatory bodies such as the FDA, USDA, OTCO, GFCO, OSHA, etc.

Reporting to this position: QA Tech(s), QA Specialist

Coverage Personnel:  Operations Manager, Production Supervisor, QA Specialist

Provides coverage for: QA Specialist; QA Technicians