Overview

We are seeking a Quality & Regulatory Compliance Specialist Innovation to support food safety, quality, and regulatory compliance initiatives for innovative products within the protein, functional foods, and better-for-you (BFY) categories. This role plays a key part in accelerating innovation while ensuring compliance with food safety standards, quality requirements, and regulatory expectations across new product development and external manufacturing partnerships.
This is a part-time contract opportunity with the potential to expand to full-time hours based on business needs. The position is primarily hybrid and requires local availability for on-site support when needed.

Responsibilities

Innovation & Project Leadership

• Represent Quality, Regulatory, and Compliance (QRC) functions on innovation projects involving protein, functional foods, and better-for-you products
• Ensure food safety and quality requirements are incorporated throughout product development
• Participate in front-end innovation, joint venture, and new product initiatives
• Conduct Quality Design Reviews and communicate findings to project stakeholders
• Support rapid product commercialization while maintaining compliance standards

Food Safety, Quality & Regulatory Support

• Develop and implement food safety and quality plans for new products and manufacturing processes
• Facilitate approval of ingredients, packaging materials, suppliers, and manufacturing locations
• Conduct quality system assessments for suppliers, manufacturers, distribution centers, and other partners
• Ensure compliance with government regulations, industry standards, and company policies
• Support development of quality and regulatory procedures related to innovation activities

Manufacturing & Operational Support

• Provide on-site support during manufacturing trials and production runs
• Assist with issue investigations, corrective actions, and quality improvement initiatives
• Support manufacturing, engineering, packaging, operations, and R&D teams throughout product development and commercialization
• Evaluate manufacturing processes and identify potential food safety and quality risks

Continuous Improvement

• Participate in continuous improvement initiatives using audit findings, KPI data, benchmarking, and gap analysis
• Support implementation of best practices related to food safety, quality systems, and regulatory compliance
• Collaborate with subject matter experts and cross-functional partners to standardize processes and improve execution

Required Qualifications

• Bachelor's degree in Food Science, Microbiology, Quality Assurance, Engineering, or a related field
• Minimum of 5 years of food quality, food safety, or regulatory compliance experience
• Experience within food manufacturing environments
• Experience supporting new product development and commercialization initiatives
• Strong knowledge of:
  • HACCP principles
  • GMP requirements
  • Food safety systems
  • FDA regulations
  • Quality design principles
• Experience working with protein, functional foods, or better-for-you product categories
• Strong problem-solving and troubleshooting skills
• Excellent written and verbal communication abilities
• Ability to work effectively in a fast-paced and evolving innovation environment
• Proficiency with Microsoft Office applications and Microsoft Teams

Preferred Qualifications

• FDA Preventive Controls Qualified Individual (PCQI) Certification
• SAP experience
• Experience with:
  • Protein products
  • Functional foods
  • Nutritional products
  • Dietary supplements
• Experience working with external manufacturers and co-manufacturing partners
• Knowledge of diverse manufacturing processes including:
  • Dairy
  • Sweeteners
  • Confectionery
  • Cereals
  • Nuts and nut processing
  • Baking
  • Extrusion processes
  • Warehousing and distribution
• Experience conducting supplier quality and manufacturing audits