Quality Assurance Specialist

At Lakeside Foods and our family of companies, we're committed to providing wholesome foods to enrich people's lives through food. We are a culture that pursues our vision of growth and innovation with passion, confidence, and commitment. We are strongest together - valuing collaborative contribution, transparency and new ideas to enable change and growth. We are committed to an inclusive and respectful environment that promotes a healthy work-life balance, and there's a seat at the table for you.

Lakeside Foods is seeking a Quality Assurance Specialist to support Corporate Quality Assurance activities, including consumer complaint management, supplier approval, customer quality support, and maintenance of quality‑related databases. This role also provides administrative and technical support to the QA team and partners cross functionally with Sales, R&D, and Operations.

• Competitive pay based on experience
• Affordable, market leading medical, dental, and vision insurance
• 401(k) retirement plan with company match
• Paid vacation and personal time
• Paid training and professional development opportunities
• A collaborative corporate office environment
• Longterm growth opportunities with a stable, family owned company

• Manage consumer complaint responses
  , including documentation, data accuracy, trending, and reporting
• Respond to Quality Assurance inquiries received via website, email, and telephone
• Identify potential quality issues and escalat(e?) concerns as appropriate

• Maintain the Trace Gains supplier approval database
  , including setup of new suppliers and items
• Coordinate with suppliers to obtain required documentation
• Support product and process development activities, including sample preparation and nutritional updates
• Assist with maintenance of the nutritional information database
• Support plant or warehouse audit activities as needed
• Perform data entry and reporting for corporate lot grading activities

• Maintain and update customer quality, food safety, and specification data in customer portals
• Complete customer questionnaires, specifications, and information requests
• Respond to Sales requests related to product specifications and customer requirements
• Create and maintain customer specifications
• Generate Certificates of Analysis (COAs) as required
• Coordinate shipment of customer samples
• Complete QA portions of New Product Request documentation

• Understand and apply FDA regulations and Lakeside Foods Quality System requirements
• Support customer and R&D sample evaluations
• Review customer labels for accuracy
• Serve as backup for other QA Specialists
• Maintain confidentiality of company information
• Perform other duties as assigned

• Associate degree or equivalent experience
• Experience in customer service, particularly consumer complaint handling
• Experience with FDA and USDA labeling requirements
• Experience with Trace Gains and Genesis / ESHA software preferred
• Experience auditing food facilities and working knowledge of HACCP principles preferred

Founded in 1887, Lakeside Foods is a family owned company with a long tradition of quality, integrity, and food safety excellence. We invest in our people and provide opportunities to grow while making a meaningful impact across our brands and customers.

Lakeside Foods and our family of companies welcomes people of all backgrounds and the varied ideas they bring to the workplace. Being an equal opportunity and affirmative action employer is part of our heritage and culture. We recruit, hire and promote employees based on qualifications and merit, without regard to race, religion, age, gender, disability, marital or veteran status. Lakeside Foods participates in E-Verify.

Equal Opportunity Employer, including Veterans and Individuals with Disabilities