Lead - Quality Assurance

Flagstone Foods: 

 At Flagstone Foods, we believe appreciation grows goodness. We have an appreciation for our customers, our employees, and the communities in which we live. Appreciation is our main ingredient!  

 Headquartered in the North Loop of Minneapolis with plants in Robersonville, North Carolina, El Paso, Texas, and Dothan, Alabama, we are one of North America’s largest manufacturers and distributors of “feel good snacks.” Think flavorful snack nuts, innovative trail mixes and wholesome dried fruits...and now, we are adding to our team! We hire creative, thoughtful, and entrepreneurial team members. If you share our enthusiasm and appreciation for goodness, you too may find a home with Flagstone Foods.  

Position Summary 

To help manage and lead the Quality Assurance program development of the SQF program, GMP’s, HACCP, and SOP’s. Incumbent will be responsible for technician training, technical coverage, recommend procedure improvements, manage ingredient inspection program, provide guidance in sanitation, QA scheduling, and manage specifications improvement projects.  Responsible for initiation and management of policies and programs associated with the Quality Assurance program for raw materials, intermediate product components, packaging supplies and finished products.

 Essential Functions

 • Responsible for overseeing the overall quality of products manufactured and ensuring compliance with all company and regulatory specifications. 

• Updating and maintaining Quality Assurance specifications and procedural manuals required for 3rd party audits. (i.e., SQF, AIB, FDA, Customer Audits). 

• Facilitate QA Training of production personnel in GMP’s and new and existing procedures. 

• Responsible for maintaining Positive Release program and QA Hold log in the JDE system. 

• Administer plant environmental testing program and identify testing locations. 

• Experience and understanding of microbiology to manage the Microbiological and Analytical testing programs, review lab results and release products. 

• Oversee Line Conformance and select and test products at specified stages in production process. 

• Key contributor in leading teams for HACCP, AIB and SQF audit programs. 

• Basic food technology skills with relationship between ingredients and processes. 

• Knowledge to develop specifications, formulas and labels and basic statistical skills. 

• Responsible to verify or update formulations and associated documentation. 

• Lead the process of investigating quality issues with input of all departments. 

• Knowledge of all facets of quality programs to substitute for QA manager in manager’s absence and assume necessary operational and administrative duties 

• Drive the resolution of customer / consumer complaints and foreign material investigations. 

• Perform plant condition/cleanliness audits of all areas of the plant. 

• Manage, schedule and train QA technicians on company and department goals 

• Will follow established programs, policies, and practices to produce safe quality foods that meet regulatory and company requirements. 

• Will be accountable to Flagstone Food Group’s Food Safety and Quality Principles. 

• Will support the development, implementation, maintenance, and ongoing improvement of the SQF 2000 Systems. 

• Perform other job-related duties as assigned.

Qualifications (Education/Experience) 

• Must know and understand all types of nuts and allergens processed through the machine. 

• Must have at least 6 months experience in a manufacturing work environment. 

• Must be proficient with Microsoft programs such as word and excel. 

• Must know how to evaluate the product for roast and/or damage. 

• Must be able to have a flexible schedule and be willing to work OT/Holidays/Weekends with the ability to go to any shift depending on the production demands. 

• Must have basic math skills: addition, subtraction, division, multiplication, and percentages. 

• Must be able to make conversions from Metric to English standards for weights. 

• Must have a high school diploma or GED certificate 

• To recommend batch, process and/or packaging corrections as required. 

• Active member of HACCP and Safety Committees. 

• Update GMP training throughout the year for hourly personnel and new employee orientation/training 

• Perform random finished goods audits. 

• Notify Supervision of any repairs or adjustments that are required. 

• Oversee compliance of color-code utensils and container policy in all plant production areas. 

• Perform all duties necessary to meet SQF, American Institute of Baking (AIB), Company, and or Government requirements / standards as prioritized by the Company. 

• Inform Management of ANY Food Safety or Quality issues or of any processes, which become noncompliant with specified requirements. 

• Ability to initiate action to prevent the occurrence of nonconformities relating to Food Safety and the Quality of the product, processes, ingredients, quality, or food safety system. 

• Report and helps control further processing or delivery of nonconforming product in terms of Food Safety and Quality issues until the deficiency or unsatisfactory condition has been corrected. 

• Inform Management of ANY Food Safety or Quality issues or of any processes, which become noncompliant with specified requirements. 

• 2-5 years of leadership experience preferred  

 Physical Requirements 

The physical demands described within the Essential Functions section of this job description are representative of those that must be met by an employee to successfully perform this job. Other duties or tasks may be assigned as required. Management may modify, change, or add to the duties of this description at any time without notice. Reasonable accommodations may be made to enable individuals with disabilities to perform the essential functions. While performing the duties of this job, the employee is required to: 

• Communicate with others both verbally and in writing. 

• Be independently mobile. 

• Use a computer and keyboard. 

• Regularly sit, stand, walk, reach, stretch, stoop, bend, for extended periods. 

• Ability to lift/carry 25 to 50 lbs. 

• Exposure to noise levels requiring hearing protection.