Job Description
TITLE: Senior Director, Food Safety & Quality Assurance DEPARTMENT: Supply Chain REPORTS TO: Chief Supply Chain Officer Who We Are Founded in 2013, Thistle is a food-tech startup empowering our customers to get and stay healthy while improving the sustainability of our food system. We make delicious, ready-to-eat plant-forward meals, snacks, and juices delivered right to our customers’ doorsteps. Our convenient subscription service empowers customers to improve their personal and planetary health by incorporating more plants into their diet.
About The Role The Senior Director of Food Safety & Quality Assurance will lead Thistle's enterprise-wide food safety and quality strategy, ensuring the highest standards of safety, compliance, and quality across our rapidly scaling direct-to-consumer (DTC)ready-to-eat food operations. As we expand our geographic footprint and production capacity, this role is critical to maintaining our reputation for delivering safe, high-quality plant-based meals.
Reporting to the Chief Supply Chain Officer, you'll drive the strategic vision for food safety culture, regulatory compliance, and quality excellence across all manufacturing facilities, supplier networks, and co-packer relationships. You'll build and lead a world-class FSQA organization that supports Thistle's mission of making plant-based eating accessible while protecting consumer health and maintaining customer trust.
This position requires an experienced food safety leader who can balance strategic oversight with hands-on expertise, ensuring our operations meet rigorous standards for fresh, minimally processed foods in a subscription-based delivery model.
How You’ll Make a Difference Strategic Food Safety Leadership - Develop and execute a comprehensive enterprise-wide food safety and quality strategy aligned with business objectives
- Establish a food safety culture framework across all organizational levels
- Lead crisis management and food safety incident response
- Drive continuous improvement initiatives that enhance food safety performance while supporting operational efficiency
Regulatory Compliance & Risk Management - Ensure compliance with FDA, USDA, state, and local regulatory bodies
- Maintain current knowledge of evolving regulations and proactively adapt programs
- Lead interactions with regulatory agencies, third-party auditors, and industry organizations
- Develop comprehensive risk assessment and management programs for food safety hazards
Quality Management Systems - Design and implement quality management systems across all facilities
- Oversee industry-related certification programs and customer-required standards
- Establish quality metrics, KPIs, and performance monitoring systems
- Lead root cause analysis and corrective action programs for QA issues
Fresh Food Manufacturing Excellence - Develop specialized programs for ready-to-eat food safety, including cold chain management, pathogen control, and shelf-life optimization
- Implement allergen management programs for plant-based foods with cross-contact considerations
- Oversee environmental monitoring programs and facility design standards
- Drive sanitation and hygiene programs for DTC food delivery
Supplier & Co-Packer Management - Establish strategic supplier qualification, verification, and monitoring programs
- Lead co-packer approval and oversight processes aligned with Thistle's standards
- Develop supplier partnerships supporting sustainable sourcing and organic certification
- Implement supply chain transparency and traceability systems
Organizational Leadership & Development - Build, lead, and develop high-performing FSQA teams across multiple facilities
- Collaborate with cross-functional leaders in Operations, Supply Chain, Product Development, and Engineering
- Provide food safety expertise for new product development and market expansion
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