Sr Director Food Safety, Quality, Regulatory Compliance

We are seeking a seasoned professional to fill the role of Senior Director of Quality, Food Safety, and Regulatory Compliance. This position is crucial to ensuring our company maintains the highest standards of quality, safety, and compliance within the food industry. The ideal candidate will have extensive experience in quality assurance, food safety, and regulatory affairs in the food industry with a proven track record of leadership and strategic decision-making.

Responsibilities:

• Leads the QFSR team to ensure the Company’s compliance with cGMP against 21 CFR 110, 21 CFR 113, and 21 CFR 117  21 CFR 120, regulations, and manages all company SOPs
• Maintain robust food safety program (e.g. EMP, HACCP, sanitation, pest control, GMP, traceability, supply chain control and training) 
• Develops and manages processes and procedures related to food safety and quality assurance across the enterprise.
• Ensuring that all the requirements related to QFSR are applied by MFG QA, R&D, Operations, Engineering and other functions involved in the design of products and processes
• Leads the organization to achieve and maintain GFSI standards and customer requirements.
• Guarantees the Company’s compliance with OOS Results, Deviations, and Corrective and preventive Actions (CAPA) according to FDA standards and guidance. Ensures smooth operation of the Analytical Laboratory with respect to collection of samples and testing for nutrients, flavors, microbial testing and other quality parameters.
• Lead, safeguard, maintain, and monitor the Company’s Food Safety management records, including those from production, the laboratory, administration, and relevant development projects
• Responsible for managing and maintaining ingredient, intermediate, and finished product specifications.
• Lead Supplier Approval Program to ensure suppliers of raw materials and packaging materials are meeting required food safety standards of Meati.
• Manage pest control and chemical suppliers of services to ensure the services are effective to maintain food safety management system of Meati as per required standard.
• Guarantees all the Company’s products, packaging and labels are accurate prior to release
• Partners with our sustainability partner to ensure compliance with EPA regulatory standards for wastewater and regulated plant activities
• Act as a subject matter expert and liaison to Federal, State and local public health authorities. Manage regulatory issues across our supply chain network.
• Development of a Recall Policy, establish a Recall Committee and chair it.  Lead Mock Recalls and traceability exercises. Coordinates critical change control activities with Regulatory Affairs to evaluate the impact to the Company’s customers
• Prepares and reports product reviews and Consumer Inquiry Information to the leadership team on a regular cadence
• Ensure competency to investigate safety and quality related customer/consumer complaints and non-conformance issues.
• Utilize Six Sigma, Lean, and/or other continuous improvement concepts to improve quality efficiency.
• Responsible for traceability and preparing organization for new FSMA rule
• Lead and maintain Food Defense program management and certifications of implicated staff
• Stay current with all regulatory and certifying agency guidelines.

Requirements:

• Bachelor's degree in a science or related field and 15+ years of Food CPG industry experience – preferably in meat, dairy, or fermented foods; or equivalent combination of education and experience, required.  Master’s or PhD degree preferred
• 7+ years of team development / management experience, required
• Strong project and portfolio management
• At least 7 years in a management capacity within a manufacturing environment under FDA and USDA compliance, frozen or refrigerated experience preferred
• Familiarity with FSMA, SFCR and Health Canada requirements.
• Proficient in building and maintaining Global Food Safety Initiative such as SQF or BRCGS. Proficiency in food safety quality system manufacturing processes, quality assurance principles, food manufacturing, SPC, and electronic QMSs (e.g. SAP QM, NetSuite QM, TrackWise, RedZone, SpecRight)
• Relevant experience with government regulatory requirements, including cGMP, in food and beverage manufacturing (USDA, FDA, etc.)
• Excellent planning and organizational skills with demonstrated multi-tasking and project management skills
• Deep statistical and evidence based decision making and proficient with JMP and/or MiniTab
• Capable of working well with cross-functional teams in a dynamic setting to achieve company goals
• Works well in high pressure situations to meet company deadlines

**Don’t meet every single requirement? Studies have shown that women and people of color are less likely to apply to jobs unless they meet every single qualification. At Meati™ we are dedicated to building a diverse, inclusive and authentic workplace, so if you’re excited about this role but your past experience doesn’t align perfectly with every qualification in the job description, we encourage you to apply anyway. You may be just the right candidate for this or other roles.**

Compensation:  
The base salary range for this role is $180,000 - $200,000 annually, which is just one aspect of our total compensation package. In addition to the salary, this position is eligible for a potential annual bonus and equity! Actual compensation may vary based on skills, experience, and location.