Regulatory Technician

POSITION TITLE: Regulatory Technician

REPORTS TO: Vice President, Quality Assurance & Regulatory Affairs

 

Menu Foods, publicly traded on the Toronto Stock Exchange, produces over one billion containers of wet pet food annually.  Four manufacturing facilities produce wet pet food for private label & co-pack customers, supplying 18 of the top 20 retailers in North American and 5 of the 6 leading National Brands.  This job will be located at the Pennsauken, New Jersey facility.

 

POSITION PURPOSE:

The Regulatory Technician is responsible for overseeing the label approval process across a continuum ranging from the initial R&D formula development phase to final label approval and intranet posting. The incumbent also assures that labels are registered as required in the states where the products are sold. The Regulatory Technician coordinates all phases of the corporate palatability testing program including design, logistics, and reporting. Additional regulatory duties include support on product and ingredient import/export permit applications, coordination of state regulatory inquiry investigations, mailings to customers and/or suppliers, and maintenance of the label declaration database.

 

NATURE AND SCOPE/PRINCIPAL ACTIVITIES

This position deals with people and budget associated with the regulatory compliance effort. It involves assistance in label declaration development, label development, label registration in states, and addressing inquiries from regulatory authorities. The incumbent will also coordinate the corporate palatability testing program through extensive interaction with outside testing services, R&D and Operations. The incumbent will need to work closely with state feed control agencies for label registrations, tonnage payments, and commercial feed licenses, and for timely resolution of state inquiries.



 

ESSENTIAL FUNCTIONS

Work closely with Menu Foods R&D group to assure proposed label declarations comply with state and federal regulations. Maintain the database of approved label declarations. Do mass edits of the label declarations database as required.





Participate in the Project Initiation Request and Label Revision Request processes. Other participators are Sales, R&D, Logistics, and Graphics Design. The Regulatory Technician reviews for proper product names and double checks label declarations assigned.





Work closely with Menu Foods sales and graphics design personnel to assure proposed labels comply with state and Federal regulatory requirements. Review all proposed labels, provide detail of necessary corrections, and approve final versions. Maintain an electronic label library of final label versions.





Review Project Initiation Requests annually, and work closely with Menu Foods Sales Managers to gain an understanding of products sold by customer and state to develop an overall label registration and tonnage budget.





Ensure the proper documentation and fees are forwarded to states for label registrations and tonnage payments prior to state deadlines.





Coordinate the corporate palatability testing program. Work closely with outside kennels, R&D, Plant QC Departments, Operations, and retail outlets to develop feeding schedules, obtain necessary Menu Foods and competitor?s products, arrange for shipping to facilities, and report results. Perform proximate analysis testing on products to be fed.





Prepare supporting documentation for import/export permit applications. Track expiration dates and collect required documentation for timely submission to assure uninterrupted product movement.





Maintain a database of state reported finished goods analytical results.





Respond to state inquiries. Level of participation will depend on nature of inquiry. Registration, tonnage, etc., requires completion. Analytical non-compliance or label violations require initiation of investigation and collation of results for review and response by VP, QA & Regulatory Affairs.





Coordinate mass mailings on regulatory issues to customers and/or suppliers.

 

KNOWLEDGE AND BACKGROUND REQUIREMENTS

A B.S. in animal or food science is desirable. Backgrounds in accounting, medical records, insurance or other detail oriented professions may be desirable and/or acceptable.



Experience in the pet food industry is desirable, particularly if it involves canned pet foods.



Strong affinity for attention to detail is imperative to assure success of label review process.



Must have flexibility with respect to job requirements. Must be able to communicate effectively with internal and external contacts at all organizational levels. Must be organized with a strong attention to detail and deadlines.



Ability to work in a teamwork environment is critical. Commitment to quality and continuous improvement in all aspects of the business is essential.





Must be computer literate. Experience in Microsoft Office, Word and Excel are critical. JDE or other mainframe program experience is desirable.





Must be physically able to lift and stack cases of finished pet foods weighing up to 33 lbs., and to perform basic quick laboratory testing.





Must have valid driver?s license .