Food Safety & Quality Assurance Manager - Production

At Coborn's, ownership isn't just something we offer-it's how we think. As an employee-owner, your decisions help shape the products our guests bring home to their families every day.

As our Food Safety & Quality Assurance Manager - Production, you'll be the driving force behind food safety, quality, and regulatory excellence across our bakery, commissary, and production facilities. You'll collaborate with teams across the organization to protect product integrity, elevate manufacturing standards, and continuously improve the processes that keep our guests coming back with confidence.

If you're passionate about food safety, enjoy solving complex challenges, thrive on building strong partnerships, and love turning high standards into everyday results, this is your opportunity to make a lasting impact-on our products, our people, and the future of our employee-owned company.

What You'll Do at Coborn's

As the Food Safety & Quality Assurance Manager - Production, you will:

• Champion a culture of food safety, quality, regulatory compliance, and continuous improvement across all production facilities.
• Lead food safety and quality assurance programs for our bakery, commissary, and other production operations.
• Ensure compliance with FDA, USDA, federal, state, and local regulations, as well as company food safety and quality standards.
• Partner closely with Production Operations, Product Development, Engineering, Supply Chain, Merchandising, Distribution, and Retail Food Safety & Quality Assurance to align food safety initiatives across the organization.
• Develop, implement, and continuously improve food safety policies, procedures, and quality management systems.
• Monitor production processes, identify opportunities for improvement, and implement corrective and preventive actions that strengthen product quality and operational performance.
• Lead internal audits, inspections, and regulatory readiness efforts while supporting third-party and government audits.
• Investigate food safety and quality concerns, identify root causes, and collaborate with cross-functional teams to implement effective, long-term solutions.
• Analyze food safety and quality metrics to identify trends, reduce risk, and drive data-informed decisions.
• Coach, mentor, and educate production teams to build food safety awareness, accountability, and best practices throughout the organization.

Why You'll Love This Role

As the Food Safety & Quality Assurance Manager - Production, this role is about more than ensuring compliance-it's about protecting the products our guests trust and helping shape the future of food production at Coborn's. As an employee-owner, you'll have the opportunity to influence decisions, collaborate across the business, and make a lasting impact on the quality and safety of every product we produce.

You'll also enjoy:

• Making a direct impact on the safety and quality of products enjoyed by thousands of guests.
• Partnering with leaders across multiple business functions to influence company-wide initiatives.
• Helping shape the future of food safety and quality within a growing employee-owned organization.
• Leading meaningful improvements that enhance product quality, operational excellence, and guest confidence.
• Being empowered to innovate, solve problems, and continuously improve how we serve our communities.

What's In It For Me?

Our remarkable employees are at the heart of everything we do. At Coborn's, we're committed to creating a supportive and rewarding workplace, one that offers a vibrant, team-oriented environment, ongoing career growth, and meaningful benefits. As an employee-owned company, we believe in investing in our people and their futures.

Compensation: $82,000-$103,000 annually. Starting compensation within this range is determined based on experience, qualifications, and other factors relevant to the position.

Please find a list of many of our exciting benefits below:

• Medical & Dental insurance with Health Savings Account (HSA), Flexible Spending Account (FSA) options
• Employee Stock Ownership Program (ESOP) - yes, we're employee-owned! Our team members benefit from the success of the company through this company-sponsored benefit!
• 401(k) plan options - we also match up to 20% of the first 5% contributed
• Competitive Paid Time Off (PTO/Vacation)
• 10% employee discount on grocery items, with additional franchise-specific discounts available at company-owned Ace Hardware, Caribou Coffee, Erbert and Gerbert's, and Pet Supplies Plus locations.
• Additional Voluntary Benefits - such as vision, accident and critical illness insurances
• Adoption Reimbursement, Paid Family Caregiver Leave, as well as company-sponsored Term Life Insurance
• Get Paid Daily with DailyPay - for employees who would like access to their pay before payday, we offer this great benefit!
• Paid Military Leave
• Employee recognition programs with monetary rewards, including in-store vouchers, years of service, and employee of the month
• Employee Health & Wellness Programs, Challenges and Resources - to assist our team members in living a life of wellbeing!
• Employee Assistance Program (EAP) - unlimited phone access to legal, financial, and work-life services and up to five free in-person counseling sessions, per situation/issue, per year
• Access to a national discount marketplace for travel, electronics, auto/home insurance, entertainment and more!

What You Will Bring:

We're looking for a collaborative leader who is passionate about food safety, thrives in a production environment, and enjoys partnering across the business to drive continuous improvement. To be successful in this role, you'll bring:

• Bachelor's degree in Food Science, Food Safety, Microbiology, Chemistry, or a related field.
• Five or more years of progressive experience in food manufacturing, food safety, or quality assurance.
• Experience with regulatory inspections, customer audits, and certification programs.
• Leadership experience and experience supporting bakery, commissary, meat, deli, or other food manufacturing operations are a plus.

• Strong leadership, communication, and cross-functional collaboration skills.
• Excellent problem-solving skills with a focus on root cause analysis and continuous improvement.
• Ability to balance regulatory compliance with practical business solutions.
• Proficiency with Microsoft Office and experience using food safety, quality management, ERP, traceability, and reporting systems.

• HACCP Certification (required).
• PCQI certification or the ability to obtain.
• Valid driver's license with the ability to travel to company locations as needed.
• SQF Practitioner, Certified Food Safety Manager (ServSafe or equivalent), or ASQ Certified Quality Auditor (CQA) certifications are preferred.

We believe that building a team of people with different backgrounds, beliefs, experiences and perspectives inspires fresh thinking and opens us up to new possibilities. We are an EEO/AA Employer - All qualified individuals, including minorities, females, veterans and individuals with disabilities are encouraged to apply.

Are you friendly, dependable, and passionate about working with people? At Coborn's, Inc., we love serving our guests, supporting our communities, and helping our team members grow their careers. If you're looking for a place where you can build a future while making a positive impact every day, we'd love to talk to you about joining our team!

Coborn's, Inc. is a fast-growing, employee-owned grocery retailer proudly serving communities across the Midwest. Our family of grocery stores includes Coborn's, Cash Wise Foods, Marketplace Foods, Hornbacher's, Tadych's Marketplace Foods, Sullivan's Foods, and Kessler's. We offer our guests an elevated shopping experience-both in-store and online-focused on freshness, value, and convenience. Guided by our company vision to inspire happiness, healthy living, and simplicity, this principle has fueled our growth for more than 100 years and is at the heart of everything we do.

Coborn's, Inc. also owns and operates liquor stores under the Coborn's Liquor, Cash Wise Liquor, Andy's Liquor, and Captain Jack's brands. In addition, we operate fuel kiosks and convenience store locations under the Little Dukes and Coborn's Express names. Many of our grocery stores also feature full-service pharmacies to support the health and wellness of our guests. We manage a variety of other retail businesses in markets where the fit is right, including Ace Hardware, Country Floral Gifts & Greenhouse, Caribou Coffee, Dunn Brothers Coffee, Erbert and Gerbert's, Godfather's Pizza, and Pet Supplies Plus. To support our diverse retail operations, we operate our own central bakery, fresh foods commissary, and grocery warehouse and distribution center.