QA Manager

Job Description

Job Description

Food Safety & Quality Assurance (FSQA) Manager

This role leads all Food Safety and Quality Assurance programs for a rapidly growing food manufacturing facility. The FSQA Manager oversees daily FSQA operations, ensures full compliance with regulatory, certification, and customer requirements, and drives continuous improvement across production. This high-impact leadership position partners closely with Operations, Sanitation, Maintenance, R&D, Regulatory, Procurement, and Supply Chain to uphold the highest standards of food safety, product quality, and operational efficiency while supporting commercialization and ongoing process enhancements.

Responsibilities

• Oversee daily FSQA operations within a regulated food manufacturing environment and ensure consistent execution of all food safety and quality programs.
• Ensure compliance with FDA and USDA/FSIS regulations, HACCP, SQF, GMPs, sanitation standards, allergen control programs, and customer-specific requirements.
• Lead, maintain, and continuously improve core food safety systems, including HACCP plans, food safety and food defense programs, environmental monitoring programs (EMP), and allergen management and traceability systems.
• Manage environmental monitoring activities, including sampling, investigations, root cause analysis, and implementation of corrective and preventive actions (CAPA).
• Oversee critical control points (CCPs), preventive controls, and quality monitoring programs to ensure product safety and consistency.
• Review and verify production and quality documentation, such as HACCP records, sanitation logs, metal detection records, and other quality system documentation.
• Lead investigations related to customer complaints, non-conformances, deviations, and foreign material incidents, and ensure timely resolution and documentation.
• Drive CAPA implementation, follow-up, and verification to prevent recurrence of issues and strengthen food safety and quality systems.
• Support product commercialization by overseeing line trials, validations, and process reviews, ensuring new products and processes meet all safety and quality requirements.
• Prepare for and lead internal, customer, regulatory, and third-party audits, including GFSI/SQF and other certification audits.
• Develop, implement, and maintain FSQA policies, procedures, standard operating procedures (SOPs), and training programs for FSQA and production teams.
• Manage product hold and release processes and oversee traceability activities within ERP systems and quality databases.
• Analyze and trend quality and operational data to identify patterns, risks, and opportunities for improvement, and recommend data-driven solutions.
• Partner with suppliers on quality requirements, specifications, and issue resolution to ensure incoming materials meet defined standards.
• Collaborate with Operations and Maintenance to improve sanitary design, process controls, and overall plant hygiene and food safety.
• Train, mentor, and develop FSQA team members, providing coaching, feedback, and performance management to build a strong quality culture.
• Participate in risk assessments, validations, and shelf-life studies to support product safety, stability, and quality over shelf life.
• Support certification programs such as SQF, Organic, Kosher, Halal, or equivalent, including documentation, audits, and ongoing compliance.
• Assist with regulatory documentation and export or customer-specific documentation requirements, ensuring accurate and timely submissions.
• Maintain documentation systems, including ERP and quality management systems, to ensure records are complete, accurate, and audit-ready.
• Support continuous improvement and operational excellence initiatives focused on food safety, product quality, and process efficiency.
• Provide leadership and oversight to the quality team across multiple shifts, ensuring clear communication, alignment on priorities, and consistent application of FSQA standards.

Essential Skills

• Bachelor’s degree in Food Science, Microbiology, Chemistry, or a related field preferred.
• 5+ years of FSQA leadership or supervisory experience in food manufacturing.
• Strong working knowledge of FDA and/or USDA regulations applicable to food manufacturing.
• Demonstrated expertise in HACCP and Preventive Controls, with PCQI knowledge or certification.
• Experience with SQF or other GFSI-recognized schemes and certification programs.
• In-depth understanding of GMPs, sanitation practices, and allergen management programs.
• Hands-on experience with environmental monitoring programs, ideally in ready-to-eat (RTE) environments.
• Proven experience managing internal, customer, regulatory, and third-party audits from preparation through follow-up.
• Familiarity with ERP systems and quality management systems for documentation, traceability, and reporting.
• Strong leadership skills with the ability to manage, coach, and develop a multi-shift FSQA team.
• Excellent problem-solving and analytical skills, including root cause analysis and CAPA management.
• Strong communication skills, with the ability to collaborate effectively across Operations, Sanitation, Maintenance, R&D, Regulatory, Procurement, and Supply Chain.
• Ability to manage competing priorities in a fast-paced, high-growth manufacturing environment.
• Experience in quality assurance within food and beverage or aseptic processing environments.
• Demonstrated capability in audit preparation, CAPA management, inspection activities, document control, and batch record review.

Additional Skills & Qualifications

• HACCP, PCQI, or SQF Practitioner certifications are highly preferred.
• Experience supporting certification programs such as SQF, Organic, Kosher, Halal, or equivalent.
• food and beverage manufacturing, including USDA- and FDA-regulated operations.
• Experience with environmental monitoring in ready-to-eat (RTE) facilities.
• Knowledge of food safety and defense programs, allergen control, and traceability systems.
• Bilingual ability in English and Spanish is a plus and supports communication with a diverse workforce.
• Experience participating in risk assessments, validations, and shelf-life studies.
• Exposure to continuous improvement and operational excellence initiatives in manufacturing environments.

Work Environment

The FSQA Manager oversees a new food manufacturing facility operating seven days a week and holds full responsibility for all quality and food safety activities at that location. The role leads a quality team of approximately 23–30 people across three shifts, with one quality supervisor on each shift reporting directly to the FSQA Manager. The environment is fast-paced, highly regulated, and focused on food safety, product quality, and operational efficiency. The facility utilizes ERP systems and quality databases to manage documentation, traceability, and reporting, and operates under FDA and USDA/FSIS regulations, HACCP, SQF, GMPs, sanitation, and allergen control programs. The FSQA Manager works closely with Operations, Sanitation, Maintenance, R&D, Regulatory, Procurement, and Supply Chain teams and regularly supports internal, customer, regulatory, and third-party audits. Some team members in the department speak primarily Spanish, so the ability to work effectively in a multilingual environment is important.

This is a Permanent position based out of Central Islip, NY.

The pay range for this position is $110000.00 - $120000.00/yr.

Eligibility requirements apply to some benefits and may depend on your job classification and length of employment. Benefits are subject to change and may be subject to specific elections, plan, or program terms. If eligible, the benefits available for this temporary role may include the following: • Medical, dental & vision • Critical Illness, Accident, and Hospital • 401(k) Retirement Plan – Pre-tax and Roth post-tax contributions available • Life Insurance (Voluntary Life & AD&D for the employee and dependents) • Short and long-term disability • Health Spending Account (HSA) • Transportation benefits • Employee Assistance Program • Time Off/Leave (PTO, Vacation or Sick Leave)

This is a fully onsite position in Central Islip,NY.

This position is anticipated to close on Aug 17, 2026.

Aston Carter provides world-class corporate talent solutions to thousands of clients across the globe. Specialized in accounting, finance, human resources, talent acquisition, procurement, supply chain and select administrative professions, we extend the capabilities of industry-leading companies. We draw on our deep recruiting expertise and expansive network to meet the evolving needs of our clients and talent community with agility and excellence. With offices across the U.S., Canada, Asia Pacific and Europe, Aston Carter serves many of the Fortune 500. We are proud to be a ClearlyRated Best of Staffing® Platinum Award winner for both client and talent service.

The company is an equal opportunity employer and will consider all applications without regard to race, sex, age, color, religion, national origin, veteran status, disability, sexual orientation, gender identity, genetic information or any characteristic protected by law.

If you would like to request a reasonable accommodation, such as the modification or adjustment of the job application process or interviewing process due to a disability, please email View email address on ziprecruiter.com for other accommodation options.

San Francisco Fair Chance Ordinance: Pursuant to the San Francisco Fair Chance Ordinance, for all positions located in the city and county of San Francisco, we will consider for employment qualified applicants with arrest and conviction records.

Massachusetts Lie Detector: It is unlawful in Massachusetts to require or administer a lie detector test as a condition of employment or continued employment. An employer who violates this law shall be subject to criminal penalties and civil liability.

Use of Artificial Intelligence (AI): We may use Artificial Intelligence (AI) to support parts of our hiring process, including sourcing, screening, and evaluating candidates. AI helps assess applications and qualifications, but final decisions are made by our hiring team. By applying, you acknowledge and agree that your application may be reviewed using AI tools.