Quality Assurance Manager

Leading Food Manufacturing Company

Seabrook, NJ Area

A leading food manufacturing organization is seeking an experienced Quality Assurance Manager to lead all quality, food safety, and sanitation programs at a high-volume production facility. Reporting directly to the Plant Manager, this individual will be responsible for ensuring product quality, regulatory compliance, audit readiness, and continuous improvement across the site.

This is a highly visible leadership role with responsibility for quality systems, food safety programs, sanitation oversight, customer and regulatory audits, and team development.

• Lead all quality assurance, food safety, and sanitation functions for the facility.
• Ensure compliance with GMP, HACCP, SQF, Food Safety, Food Security, and company quality standards.
• Monitor product quality throughout the manufacturing process and drive corrective actions when necessary.
• Review and oversee all Food Safety & Quality documentation and reporting.
• Serve as the primary contact for product recalls and quality-related issues.
• Manage product hold and release decisions.

• Lead customer, FDA, USDA, SQF, Organic, and third-party audits.
• Coordinate audit preparation, execution, and corrective action plans.
• Maintain audit readiness and ensure ongoing compliance with regulatory requirements.
• Partner with corporate quality leadership on consumer complaints, root cause investigations, and trend analysis.

• Manage sanitation programs and personnel to maintain world-class plant cleanliness standards.
• Monitor and improve the Master Sanitation Schedule.
• Identify process gaps and implement corrective actions to strengthen sanitation performance.

• Partner closely with Production, Maintenance, Supply Chain, Warehouse, and Finance teams.
• Drive continuous improvement initiatives related to quality, food safety, and operational excellence.
• Support employee training programs, including SQF verification and validation activities.

• Lead a team of direct and indirect reports within the Quality and Sanitation functions.
• Recruit, coach, mentor, and develop employees.
• Conduct performance evaluations and provide ongoing feedback and development opportunities.
• Foster a culture of accountability, safety, and continuous improvement.

• Bachelor's degree in Food Science, Microbiology, Quality, Engineering, or a related field; equivalent experience will also be considered.
• 5+ years of Quality Assurance experience within a food manufacturing environment.
• Strong knowledge of:
• HACCP
• GMPs
• Food Safety Systems
• Manufacturing Quality Programs
• SQF, HACCP, and PCQI certifications.
• Experience leading customer and regulatory audits.
• Ability to perform root cause analysis and apply statistical problem-solving techniques.
• Strong analytical, organizational, and communication skills.
• Proficiency with spreadsheets and quality data analysis.

• Experience with in food and/or beverage manufacturing.
• Knowledge of microbiology and product formulation.
• ASQ or other professional quality certifications.
• Experience managing FDA, USDA, Organic, SQF, and customer audits.
• Experience with technical report writing and quality documentation.
• Strong coaching, training, and team development capabilities.