WHAT DOES A FOOD SAFETY MANAGER DO?

Published: Mar 27, 2025 - The Food Safety Manager supports the execution of SQF Plans and compliance with all food safety, HARPC, third-party audits, and customer requirements to maintain certification and regulatory standards. This position leads continuous improvement initiatives across food safety programs, including SOPs, ingredient inspections, complaint resolution, and standardized work instructions. This role oversees training, monitoring, and verification of food safety systems, while managing risk, ensuring legal compliance, and serving as the site SQF Practitioner.

A Review of Professional Skills and Functions for Food Safety Manager

1. Food Safety Manager Duties

  • Training: Provides technical training to management and employees regarding food safety program adequacy, pest control, operational methods, personnel practices, and maintenance for food safety and cleaning practices.
  • Manual Development: Develops and updates food safety manuals.
  • Presentation: Makes presentations and provides explanations of food safety documents to employees, vendors, and client personnel as necessary.
  • On-Site Education: Plans and executes on-site educational food safety presentations.
  • Reporting: Prepares written reports for management, recapping observations and corrective actions if needed.
  • Auditing: Conducts food safety audits using SOP instructions.
  • Training & Action: Trains personnel in food safety issues, writes reports following audits, and ensures proper corrective action time frames.
  • Certification: Ensures all current certification requirements are met, as well as the addition and/or compliance of any new required certification.
  • Complaint Handling: Audits, customer complaint follow-up, and questionnaires.
  • Production Monitoring: Monitors production parameters to ensure production effectiveness and efficiency.
  • Quality Analysis: Analyzes quality, feedback, and interpretation results for production or staff management.
  • Communication: Communicates quality control information to all relevant departments, suppliers, or customers.
  • Inspection Criteria: Creates and implements inspection and testing criteria/procedures.

2. Food Safety Manager Details

  • SQF Execution: Works with the Quality team to execute SQF Plans to achieve/maintain SQF Certification at the facility and meet all quality program requirements.
  • Food Safety Compliance: Facilitates and standardizes all Food Safety, HARPC, 3rd party audit adherence, and customer requirements.
  • Improvement Initiatives: Leads improvement initiatives in all aspects related to Food Safety, including SOPs, ingredient inspections, Food Safety complaints, and developing standardized work instructions.
  • Goal Setting: Establishes Food Safety goals and executes improvement initiatives to achieve goals aligned with business objectives.
  • Product Evaluation: Manages finished product evaluation system and drives improvements in key customer/consumer Food Safety attributes.
  • Training: Establishes and implements training needs related to product legality and Food Safety compliance.
  • Pre-Requisite Programs: Oversees Pre-Requisite Programs for Food Safety.
  • Personnel Training: Trains personnel and maintains all training records on critical Food Safety requirements.
  • Risk Guidance: Provides guidance and leadership in situations where deviations have occurred or a potential risk is identified.
  • Monitoring & Verification: Oversees monitoring and verification of Food Safety programs to ensure products meet the facility’s Food Safety Plans.
  • Deviation Leadership: Provides guidance and leadership in situations where deviations have occurred.
  • SQF Practitioner: Serves as site SQF Practitioner.

3. Food Safety Manager Responsibilities

  • Staff Management: Management of staff responsible for environmental management, quality verifications, technical support services, and food safety oversight.
  • Sensory Evaluation: Management of all aspects of product sensory evaluation, product sensory specification, and implementing the standards program at the designated Plant.
  • Sensory Oversight: Oversees the evaluation of appearance, odor, flavor, and texture of ingredients and meals during and after the production process.
  • Daily Tasting: Participates in the daily tasting and identifies differences from expectations/standards.
  • Deviation Reporting: Identifies and reports out-of-spec materials, WIPs, and operating conditions to the appropriate managers.
  • Collaboration: Collaborates with others using sensory abilities to remedy problems.
  • Deviation Management: Immediately addresses deviations from approved standards.
  • Regulatory Compliance: Interpretation and implementation of FDA regulatory compliance, including Good Manufacturing Practices (GMPs) related to manufacturing, storage, and distribution.
  • Safety Programs: Establishes and maintains programs and procedures to ensure the safety of food products manufactured within the facility.
  • Product Compliance: Verifies process and product compliance with National Organics Program requirements.
  • Continuous Improvement: Participates in and initiates continuous improvement activities, including root cause analysis and corrective action.

4. Food Safety Manager Job Summary

  • KPI Management: Management and analysis of QFS key performance indicators.
  • MOS Participation: Participation in MOS process, reporting on food safety, sanitation, sensory topics, audit results, and other key metrics.
  • Customer Service Response: Responds to customer service questions concerning quality issues.
  • Complaint Investigation: Responsible for investigations and corrective actions for escalated consumer complaints.
  • Sanitation Oversight: Ensures proper sanitation of all equipment, plant, and grounds, and that all required paperwork is completed on time.
  • Preventive Control: As a PCQI or designee, ensures daily logs conform to the Pre-Operational Preventive Control.
  • Sanitation Alignment: Ensures Sanitation Department activities align with SQF, QAI GF, and Kosher requirements.
  • Procedure Development: Creates, develops, or devises procedures and specifications.
  • Audit Management: Responsible for management and follow-up on outside audits by third-party auditors and regulatory food safety inspection agencies.
  • SQF Deputy: Acts as Deputy SQF practitioner for the plant/campus.
  • Cleanliness Maintenance: Works closely with personnel to ensure world-class cleanliness is maintained throughout all production and warehouse facilities.

5. Food Safety Manager Accountabilities

  • Team Leadership: Leads and continuously develops a regional team of Food Safety, Product Safety, and Regulatory Affairs specialists in Asia Pacific.
  • Regulatory Competency: Ensures the team acquires competencies on relevant regulatory standards for Food Contact Materials, chemical regulations, and product safety requirements for AA and AP products.
  • Program Development: Develops, implements, and manages Food Safety and Chemical Regulatory programs in collaboration with internal and external stakeholders, aligning with Global Food Safety Strategy and PSRA Guidelines.
  • Compliance Assessment: Assesses product safety and regulatory compliance, including international industrial and customer standards (e.g., Food Contact Safety Regulations, REACh).
  • SDS & Labeling: Generates product SDS, hazard label data, reports, and Declaration of Compliance (DoC) for Food Contact products according to relevant regulatory standards and Henkel SHE standards.
  • Regulatory Liaison: Serves as the company liaison between local regulatory agencies and industry associations related to Food Contact Materials in Asia Pacific.
  • Cross-Functional Collaboration: Partners with Legal, Operations, Customer Service, and Business teams to execute food safety programs.
  • Compliance Solutions: Drives scalable solutions to ensure safety and compliance with all relevant regulatory requirements by collaborating with technology teams and stakeholders.
  • Leadership Engagement: Engages cross-organizationally with leadership to execute safety and compliance controls, best practices, and drives continual improvement.
  • Industry Knowledge: Maintains subject matter mastery and current industry knowledge to advise Business and Operations teams on emerging trends and regulatory requirements.
  • Operational Excellence: Executes, maintains, and improves food safety programs in terms of operational excellence.
  • Audit Compliance: Audits Amazon’s fulfillment centers to ensure permit compliance, pest control, and temperature-sensitive mechanisms are in place.
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