Director of Quality and Food Safety

Kayem Foods

Job Title: Director, Food Safety, Quality Assurance, Environmental Health & Human Safety

Kayem is a family-owned and operated craft meat business that has been making New England’s favorite franks, sausages and prepared meats in Chelsea, MA since 1909. This hands on key leader will provide strategic direction and leadership for Kayem Foods’ Food Safety Quality Systems and Food and human safety programs to promote, ensure and enhance our best-in-class policies, processes, standards, initiatives and compliance. Our Director of FSQA will provide oversight to establish all HACCP, BRC, SSOP’s, scientific testing, pre-requisite programs, formulation, testing and development as related to daily operations and will participate at all levels of R&D to collaborate on product development and process improvement. This role will serve as the subject matter expert around all regulatory requirements and provide guidance to leadership, direct team members and other internal stakeholders. Strong knowledge of FSIS Appendix A & B and OSHA required.

Essential Duties & Responsibilities:

• Develops, implements, and monitors safety, food safety, environmental health, and quality programs that ensure corporate and regulatory standards are met in our plants and various contract manufacturers’ locations. Program examples include: OSHA, HACCP, GMP, BRC, Pest Control, SSOP, hold and release and production disposition.

• Responsible for all product safety, quality and regulatory compliance company wide.

• Oversee all operations of QA, Microbiology, and Chemistry in manufacturing facilities.

• Serves as the point person for human and food safety incident prevention and leads investigations. Determines the root cause, identifies solutions and leads corrective action and develops communication plans to stakeholders of all levels while reporting to senior leadership.

• Directly handles and leads regulatory, internal and external audits such as GFSI (BRC), Organic processors and PL customer specific Food Safety and Quality framework.

• Develops Safety, Food Safety plans and training programs to ensure compliance with the requirements of customers such as Food Safety Modernization Act (Walmart). Supervises regulatory, food safety and quality leaders and where necessary interprets food safety policies, procedures, and USDA-FSIS regulations for such leaders.

• Provides guidance and oversight for supplier and customer activities relating to quality, food safety, and product safety matters. Sets standards for supplier qualification and assists R&D with the selection of contract manufacturers.

• Develops organizational strategies and apply total quality management tools and approaches to analytical reporting processes including KPIs and actions to delivery safe quality products and drive continuous improvement year over year.

• Ensures that new manufacturing equipment design and installations meet sanitary standards.

• Ensures Product Tracking/Traceability program is managed and measured along the supply chain, from raw material/ingredients suppliers through final processing to final point of sale.

• Collaborate with key functional groups (R&D, Operations, Marketing, Sales, Customer Service, and Procurement) to drive company-wide and cross-functional initiatives.

• Align with Sales, Operations, & Product Development teams to ensure the commercial process is efficient and effective for new products.

• Defines budgets for expenses or capital investments for own department and influences others for budgets connected to food safety program maintenance and improvement.

• Provides leadership and direction including hiring, development, performance management, and mentorship of team.

Minimum Required Qualifications:

• Bachelor’s Degree required with minimum of 10 years of experience working in a USDA/OSHA regulated meat and/or poultry manufacturing facility in a Food safety/Quality assurance leadership role.

• Strong knowledge of FSIS Appendix A&B

• Must be a flexible self- starter, capable of working across multiple facets of the business and be solutions oriented, both short term and log term without compromising safety.

• Ability to work in a fast-paced, high intensity environment while interaction with staff at all levels.

• Excellent organizational skills and ability to handle multiple projects and activities to ensure timely completion.

• Must have strong interpersonal skills with the ability to remain positive, proactive and resourceful.

• Flexibility to travel (driving) to Kayem manufacturing plants or supplier locations.