FSQA Manager

Producers Peanut Company Incorporat; Virginia (MN); On-site; USD 90,000 - 130,000; Full time

Job summary

Producers Peanut Company Incorporated seeks a FSQA Manager to lead all food-safety and quality-assurance programs at the facility, ensuring compliance with federal, state, and customer requirements. You will oversee SQF, regulatory documentation, audits, and a strong food-safety culture across all departments.

The role includes acting as SQF Practitioner, supervising the QA team, and coordinating recalls, third-party audits, and regulatory interactions to maintain certifications and product

Qualifications

• Experience leading FSQA programs in a food-processing facility.
• Strong knowledge of FSMA, FDA, USDA requirements.
• Ability to chair SQF Management Review and coordinate audits.

Responsibilities

• Lead and manage all FSQA programs and regulatory documentation.
• Oversee SQF, Kosher, Halal certifications and third-party audits.
• Maintain and test Food-Defense and recall programs.
• Lead QA team and supplier verification activities.
• Develop and sustain a strong food-safety culture across departments.

Skills

SQF Practitioner

Regulatory Compliance

Food Safety

Auditing

CAPA

HACCP

PCQI

Team Leadership

Quality Management

Job description

Job Description

The FSQA Manager leads and manages all food-safety and quality-assurance programs at the facility, ensuring compliance with federal, state, and customer requirements. Responsibilities include oversight of the Food Safety & Quality Management System, third-party certifications (e.g., SQF, Kosher, Halal), regulatory documentation, internal audits, and team supervision. The FSQA Manager serves as the designated SQF Practitioner and the company’s authorized representative for food-safety and regulatory matters and oversees the development and maintenance of a strong food-safety culture across all departments.

Roles and Responsibilities

• Serve as the facility’s primary food-safety and regulatory representative, including during recalls, inspections, third-party audits, and customer inquiries.
• Ensure full compliance with FSMA, FDA, USDA, customer specifications, and relevant third-party standards (e.g., SQF, Halal).
• Act as SQF Practitioner; chair the annual SQF Management Review and issue monthly status reports to senior leadership.
• Oversee the integrated Food-Safety & Quality Management System (HACCP/Food-Safety Plan, PCQI, SQF Food Quality Plan, sanitation, allergen, pest control, calibration, and document-control programs).
• Develop, maintain, and annually test the FDA-mandated Food-Defense Plan; function as the Food-Defense Qualified Individual and trainer.
• Lead the Crisis-Management/Business-Continuity Plan and conduct an annual simulation test.
• Reanalyze the Food-Safety Plan per regulatory requirements—or sooner if products, processes, or regulations change and document all revisions.
• Lead validation and ongoing verification of all preventive controls, retaining scientific evidence of effectiveness.
• Validate sanitation effectiveness through ATP/protein swabs, microbial testing, visual inspection, and chemical-concentration records.
• Oversee potable-water, compressed-air, and chemical-control verification, plus glass, brittle-plastic, and wood-control inspections.
• Manage foreign-material prevention systems, including metal/X-ray detector validation and performance checks.
• Oversee net-weight and fill-control verification to ensure legal and customer compliance.
• Ensure all Critical Control Points (CCPs) in the HACCP/Food-Safety Plan are validated, routinely monitored, and verified; review CCP records and elevate deviations for immediate corrective action.
• Design, implement, and review statistically valid sampling programs for raw materials, in-process products, finished goods, and environmental surfaces.
• Oversee routine in-process and finished-product quality testing programs to verify specification adherence and product consistency throughout manufacturing.
• Oversee the QA team’s coordination of routine and investigate sample shipments to ISO/IEC 17025-accredited laboratories; maintain chain-of-custody records and ensure results are promptly reviewed by a PCQI.
• Trend and analyze data from environmental monitoring, product testing, and process controls; present quarterly reports with corrective-action plans to senior leadership and the Food-Safety Team. Oversee and routinely test traceability and recall programs to meet FSMA and SQF requirements (mock recalls, full-system verification).
• Control product hold/release and non-conforming-product disposition, ensuring documented approvals and traceability.
• Investigate deviations, non-conformances, and customer complaints using root-cause analysis and CAPA methodology; verify corrective-action effectiveness.
• Maintain constant audit readiness for regulators, customers, and third-party certifiers.
• Develop and oversee FSMA Supply-Chain Program: risk-based supplier approval, verification, and record retention.
• Lead the Food-Fraud (VACCP) vulnerability assessment and mitigation program; review annually.
• Maintain certifications and supporting records for Kosher, Halal, and other specialty claims.
• Manage customer audits, documentation audits, documentation requests, and complaint investigations.
• Act as the company’s authorized regulatory representative; prepare, review, issue, and sign all food-safety and regulatory documents for customers, auditors, and agencies (e.g., Letters of Guarantee, FSMA, GMO, Prop 65, allergen, irradiation, RTE declarations), coordinating with leadership or legal counsel as needed.
• Conduct periodic reviews of all compliance statements and regulatory letters to confirm they accurately reflect the most current regulations and the company’s documented manufacturing practices and controls.
• Support Sales, Marketing, and R&D to ensu