Chief Quality & Food Safety Leader

F & S Produce Company Inc; Vineland (NJ); On-site; USD 180,000 - 320,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Competitive compensation package

Medical, Dental, Vision and Life Ins

401(K) including company match

Paid Time Off and Holidays

Tuition Assistance

Job summary

F&S Fresh Foods, headquartered in Vineland, NJ, seeks a Vice President of Quality & Food Safety to lead QA, food safety, regulatory compliance, supplier quality, and customer quality across all facilities. You will shape enterprise standards, risk management, and audit readiness while partnering with Operations, Supply Chain, and executive leadership.

The role requires strategic, data-driven leadership with a track record of building high-performing teams and delivering measurable results in a

Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree in Food Science, Microbiology, Food Technology, Engineering, or related field.
• HACCP and PCQI certifications.
• 15+ years of progressive Quality and Food Safety leadership, including 7+ years leading multi-site organizations.
• Extensive experience in fresh, refrigerated, ready-to-eat, produce, protein, or other highly regulated food manufacturing.
• Proven success leading customer audits, regulatory inspections, certification audits, recalls, and crisis events.
• Strong knowledge of FDA, USDA, FSMA, GFSI, Environmental Monitoring Programs, and Quality Systems.
• Nice to have: Lead Auditor, SQF Practitioner, BRCGS, or equivalent certification.

Responsibilities

• Set and execute the long-term Quality and Food Safety strategy, including enterprise goals, standards, KPIs, and governance processes aligned with business objectives.
• Lead all corporate Quality Assurance, Food Safety, Regulatory Compliance, Supplier Quality, and Customer Quality functions, ensuring consistent programs across all facilities.
• Own the enterprise Food Safety Management System, including HACCP, Preventive Controls, Environmental Monitoring, Allergen Management, Traceability, Food Defense, and pathogen control.
• Establish and maintain enterprise quality management systems so products consistently meet specifications, customer expectations, and regulatory requirements.
• Ensure compliance with FDA, USDA, FSMA, GFSI, state, local, and customer requirements, interpreting emerging regulations and maintaining audit and inspection readiness at every site.
• Serve as senior liaison with regulatory agencies, certification bodies, and customer auditors, overseeing closure of audit findings, regulatory actions, and corrective actions.
• Serve as executive authority and decision-maker for food safety incidents, recalls, and crisis response, maintaining risk assessment, traceability, mock recall, and incident management programs.
• Represent F&S during customer visits, audits, business reviews, and quality events, building strategic relationships and leading resolution of significant complaints and brand-risk events.
• Partner with Commercial, Product Development, and Operations to support growth while maintaining product integrity and improving customer satisfaction.
• Establish supplier approval, audit, and monitoring standards and drive supplier performance improvement, partnering with Procurement to mitigate supply chain risk.
• Drive data-based improvement to reduce defects, waste, and customer complaints and improve process capability, publishing executive dashboards and performance updates for leadership.
• Lead and develop Directors, Managers, and technical leaders, building succession plans, bench strength, and a culture of accountability, engagement, and high performance.
• Establish enterprise training standards and competency requirements, partnering with Operations and Human Resources to build food safety and quality into talent development and performance management.
• Champion a companywide culture where food safety and quality are everyone’s responsibility, promoting proactive risk identification and continuous improvement.
• Serve as the company’s senior subject matter expert on food safety, quality systems, microbiology, compliance, and regulatory matters.
• Participate in strategic planning, acquisition integration activities, and enterprise transformation initiatives.

Skills

Strategic leadership

Quality Improvement

Regulatory Compliance

Audit Management

Cross-functional collaboration

Education

Bachelor’s degree in Food Science / Microbiology / Food Technology / Engineering

HACCP and PCQI certifications

Job description

F&S Fresh Foods, headquartered in Vineland, NJ, seeks a Vice President of Quality & Food Safety to lead QA, food safety, regulatory compliance, supplier quality, and customer quality across all facilities. You will shape enterprise standards, risk management, and audit readiness while partnering with Operations, Supply Chain, and executive leadership.

The role requires strategic, data-driven leadership with a track record of building high-performing teams and delivering measurable results in a