Food Safety Specialist

Job Title: Food Safety Specialist

Job Description

Support the Plant Quality Manager in managing, maintaining, and implementing Quality and Food Safety policies, SOPs, and work instructions to ensure compliance with SQF standards, corporate policies, and regulatory requirements.

Responsibilities

• Act as an Internal Auditor during monthly SQF Program Audits and weekly Housekeeping Inspections.

• Compile non-conformances from audits and inspections to incorporate into the CAPA program.

• Manage the facility Corrective Action and Preventive Action (CAPA) program by assigning CAPA owners, conducting root cause analysis, tracking completion status, assessing corrective action effectiveness, maintaining documentation, and escalating issues to the Corporate Quality team as necessary.

• Serve as a site backup SQF practitioner and maintain the knowledge base for local and corporate policies, procedures, and records to demonstrate compliance during SQF audits.

• Oversee the site Environmental Monitoring Program by ensuring all samples are taken according to schedule, ensuring corrective actions and repeat swabs are conducted when action levels are exceeded, tracking and trending results, and reviewing the program's effectiveness during Quality Management Reviews and KPI tracking.

Essential Skills

• Expertise in food safety and quality control.

• Bachelor's Degree in Food Science, Biology, or Chemistry.

• At least 5 years of experience in the food or beverage industry in QA/Food Safety/SQF Practitioner roles.

• PCQI Certification.

• Knowledge of FDA & GFSI (SQF, BRC, or FSSC) food safety and quality standards.

• Experience working in an environment certified to a GFSI benchmarked standard.

Additional Skills & Qualifications

• ERP experience.

• Ability to obtain or currently possess an SQF practitioner certification.

• Internal audit certification or the ability to obtain it within 3 months.

• Lean Six Sigma Green Belt (preferred).

Job Type & Location

This is a Contract to Hire position based out of Countryside, IL.

Pay and Benefits

The pay range for this position is $48.00 - $55.00/hr.

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)

Workplace Type

This is a fully onsite position in Countryside,IL.

Application Deadline

This position is anticipated to close on Jan 23, 2026.

About Actalent

Actalent is a global leader in engineering and sciences services and talent solutions. We help visionary companies advance their engineering and science initiatives through access to specialized experts who drive scale, innovation and speed to market. With a network of almost 30,000 consultants and more than 4,500 clients across the U.S., Canada, Asia and Europe, Actalent serves many of the Fortune 500.

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 due to a disability, please email [email protected] (%[email protected]) for other accommodation options.