Cream Cheese Quality Lab Technician

Actalent; New Holland (Lancaster County); On-site; USD 28,000 - 32,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Medical, dental & vision

401(k) Retirement Plan

Paid time off

Job summary

Actalent seeks a Quality Technician for a contract role in New Holland, PA to test finished cream cheese products and ensure compliance with chemical, microbiological, and regulatory standards. You will perform a range of analyses, maintain testing equipment, and support environmental monitoring in a plant and lab setting.

The role requires experience in quality-related work, knowledge of SQF/FDA/USDA/PMO, and data entry into LIMS.

Qualifications

• At least 6 months of experience in a quality-related role, ideally within food manufacturing.
• Basic working knowledge of SQF, FDA, USDA, PMO, and customer requirements related to food safety.
• Experience in quality control within a laboratory or production environment.
• Foundational understanding of microbiology, biology, or food science as it relates to product testing and food safety.
• Ability to perform chemical and physical tests on food products (moisture, total solids, fat, salt, pH, residual oxygen, etc.).
• Ability to perform basic microbial plating, interpretation, and enumeration.
• Proficiency in accurate data entry into LIMS software or similar systems.
• Capability to conduct preventative maintenance, simple repairs, and calibration checks.
• Strong attention to detail and commitment to food safety standards.
• Ability to work effectively in a food manufacturing environment and follow procedures.

Responsibilities

• Test finished products to verify chemical and microbiological compliance with internal quality standards and applicable legal requirements.
• Apply SQF, FDA, USDA, PMO, and customer quality and safety requirements in daily testing activities.
• Perform chemical and physical analyses on incoming, in-process, and finished product, including moisture, solids, fat, salt, pH, residual oxygen, leak detection, and titratable acidity.
• Enter analytical data accurately and promptly into LIMS software and other relevant databases.
• Maintain laboratory testing equipment in proper working order by completing preventative maintenance and calibration checks.
• Perform basic microbial plating, interpretation, and enumeration on in-process and finished product samples.
• Record and trend microbiological data, ensuring accurate data entry and contributing to ongoing quality monitoring.
• Support the environmental monitoring program by collecting and testing surface, air, drain, hygiene, pathogen swabs, and water samples.
• Enter environmental monitoring results into the database and assist with trending and interpretation of data.
• Follow established quality control, quality assurance, inspection, and audit procedures to support food safety and regulatory compliance.
• Collaborate with production and quality teams to address nonconformances and support continuous improvement of food manufacturing processes.
• Adhere to all safety, sanitation, and GMP practices within the food manufacturing environment.

Skills

Quality testing

SQF knowledge

Microbiology testing

LIMS data entry

Equipment maintenance

Environmental monitoring

Tools

LIMS software

Job description

Actalent seeks a Quality Technician for a contract role in New Holland, PA to test finished cream cheese products and ensure compliance with chemical, microbiological, and regulatory standards. You will perform a range of analyses, maintain testing equipment, and support environmental monitoring in a plant and lab setting.

The role requires experience in quality-related work, knowledge of SQF/FDA/USDA/PMO, and data entry into LIMS.