Primal Pet Group

Sanitation Manager and Manufacturing Specialist

Abilene, TX - Full Time

COMPANY OVERVIEW
Primal Pet Group is a manufacturer of fully prepared, human-grade raw foods and treats for dogs and cats. Primal Pet Foods was founded with the goal of improving the quality of life and overall health and happiness of pets through wholesome raw foods that mimic the diet of animals in the wild. We are looking for reliable and motivated people to join our fast-paced, growing Primal Team!

Sanitation Manager and Manufacturing Specialist
Position Overview: As the Sanitation Manager and Manufacturing Specialist, you will lead key initiatives to advance our manufacturing and sanitation strategies, ensuring we have consistently clean, food safe equipment and operations, driving consistent application of good manufacturing practices at the site, implementing continuous improvement in sanitation practices, leading an effective and efficient environmental monitoring program, and integrating sanitation with manufacturing and scheduling to drive efficiencies. This position will work closely with the plant management team including the Production Manager, the FSQA Manager, the Warehouse Manager, the Maintenance Manager and the Site Director to ensure a seamless and consistent sanitation program that enhances manufacturing operations. 
Location: Abilene (requires <10% travel)

Responsibilities:
  • Develop and implement a master sanitation plan and schedule that complies with GMPs, HACCP, Food Safety, Quality and security guidelines that meets and exceeds Primal’s requirements.  
  • Work seamlessly with other managers to ensure consistent application of GMPs and sanitation practices across the site, including other department cleaning practices as an integral part of overall sanitation.
  • Ensure best practices for sanitation are in use that support efficient manufacturing by improving uptime and improving first pass yield, all while improving sanitation effectiveness.
  • Develop and implement an effective, predictive EMP program.
  • Identify and mitigate risks and obstacles that may impact food safety, product quality, or employee safety.
  • Document sanitation programs in an effective manner that meets all regulatory and food safety requirements, including audit and traceability requirements.
  • Foster effective communication and collaboration among team members, promoting a positive, proactive, productive, and accountable work environment.
  • Ability to direct team(s) of hourly employees in the effective implementation of sanitation program including use of sprays, cleaners, sanitizers, hoses, and chemical compounds, assigning individuals tasks and shifts as needed to complete sanitation.
  • Support the Site Director by coaching and guiding other managers as assigned
  • Flexible to be able to take on other duties as assigned, including filling in for other department leadership as needed.
  • Stay up to date with industry trends, best practices, and regulatory requirements related to food safety, quality, and sanitation.

Qualifications:
  • Bachelor's degree in quality, micro-biology, engineering, or supply chain or a related field of science preferred. Relevant certifications (e.g., HACCP) are highly desirable.
  • 5 years+ of relevant experience including manufacturing, sanitation, quality or food safety, as well as other relevant CPG supply chain experience preferably within the foods or other regulated products industries.
  • Proven track record of successfully managing teams of 20-40 people.
  • Strong understanding of food manufacturing processes, quality standards, and regulatory requirements.
  • Excellent organizational and time management skills, with the ability to prioritize and manage multiple initiatives simultaneously.
  • Exceptional leadership and team management abilities, with a collaborative and results-oriented approach.
  • Effective communication and interpersonal skills, with the ability to interact with stakeholders at various levels of the organization.
  • Willingness to travel occasionally (<10%) of the time to project sites and manufacturing facilities.
EDUCATION and/or EXPERIENCE 

5+ years' experience at Manager leadership role within a manufacturing environment.•    Strong leadership skills, with an ability to build trust among employees and peers, and provide effective direction
•    Ability to prioritize and follow through to achieve results, meet deadlines meeting business needs
•    Strong oral and written communication skills, strong managerial skills including good judgment, planning, organizing, innovative approach to problem-solving, and motivating employees.
•    Must have a good practical knowledge of FDA, GMP's, HACCP, OSHA, etc., with a good background in processing and packaging equipment.


LANGUAGE SKILLS  
Good ability to read, speak and communicate in English with employees, direct supervisors, team leads and upper management.  Bilingual ability is strongly preferred.

  
MATHEMATICAL SKILLS  

Ability to add and subtract numbers and to multiply and divide and understand percentages.  Ability to perform these operations using units of weight measurement and quantity measurements. 



REASONING ABILITY  
Ability to apply common sense understanding to carry out detailed written or oral instructions.  Ability to deal with problems involving concrete variables in standardized situations. 



CERTIFICATES, LICENSES, REGISTRATIONS 
HACCP, PCQI for Animal Feed Preferred


PHYSICAL DEMANDS   
The physical demands described here are representative of those that must be met by an employee to successfully perform the essential functions of this job. Reasonable accommodations may be made to enable individuals with disabilities to perform the essential functions. 
While performing the duties of this job, the employee is regularly required to stand.  The employee frequently is required to walk; use hands to finger, handle, or feel; and reach with hands and arms.  The employee is occasionally required to sit and talk or hear.  The employee must occasionally lift and/or move up to 50 pounds.  Specific vision abilities required by this job include peripheral vision. 


WE OFFER GREAT BENEFITS AND PERKS!
Competitive Pay
Paid vacation 
Company-paid holidays, 7 per year
Low-cost medical insurance, including options with Kaiser, Sutter and UHC
Competitive dental, vision, and supplemental insurance. Plus, discounted pet insurance!
Career opportunities, training, and much more!
Primal Pet Group is a Drug Free Workplace and an Equal Opportunity Employer.

 

Primal Pet Group is a Drug Free Workplace and an Equal Opportunity Employer.

Please review our Employment Privacy Policy here: https://primalpetfoods.com/pages/employee-privacy-policy. By submitting an application with us, you acknowledge that you have read and understand this policy.

Apply: Sanitation Manager and Manufacturing Specialist
* Required fields
First name*
Last name*
Email address*
Location
Phone number*
Resume*

Attach resume as .pdf, .doc, .docx, .odt, .txt, or .rtf (limit 5MB) or paste resume

Paste your resume here or attach resume file

The following questions are entirely optional.
To comply with government Equal Employment Opportunity and/or Affirmative Action reporting regulations, we are requesting (but NOT requiring) that you enter this personal data. This information will not be used in connection with any employment decisions, and will be used solely as permitted by state and federal law. Your voluntary cooperation would be appreciated. Learn more.
Gender
Race/Ethnicity

Invitation for Job Applicants to Self-Identify as a U.S. Veteran
  • A “disabled veteran” is one of the following:
    • a veteran of the U.S. military, ground, naval or air service who is entitled to compensation (or who but for the receipt of military retired pay would be entitled to compensation) under laws administered by the Secretary of Veterans Affairs; or
    • a person who was discharged or released from active duty because of a service-connected disability.
  • A “recently separated veteran” means any veteran during the three-year period beginning on the date of such veteran's discharge or release from active duty in the U.S. military, ground, naval, or air service.
  • An “active duty wartime or campaign badge veteran” means a veteran who served on active duty in the U.S. military, ground, naval or air service during a war, or in a campaign or expedition for which a campaign badge has been authorized under the laws administered by the Department of Defense.
  • An “Armed forces service medal veteran” means a veteran who, while serving on active duty in the U.S. military, ground, naval or air service, participated in a United States military operation for which an Armed Forces service medal was awarded pursuant to Executive Order 12985.
Veteran status
I IDENTIFY AS ONE OR MORE OF THE CLASSIFICATIONS OF PROTECTED VETERAN LISTED ABOVE
I AM NOT A PROTECTED VETERAN
I DON’T WISH TO ANSWER

Voluntary Self-Identification of Disability
Voluntary Self-Identification of Disability Form CC-305
OMB Control Number 1250-0005
Expires 04/30/2026
Why are you being asked to complete this form?

We are a federal contractor or subcontractor. The law requires us to provide equal employment opportunity to qualified people with disabilities. We have a goal of having at least 7% of our workers as people with disabilities. The law says we must measure our progress towards this goal. To do this, we must ask applicants and employees if they have a disability or have ever had one. People can become disabled, so we need to ask this question at least every five years.

Completing this form is voluntary, and we hope that you will choose to do so. Your answer is confidential. No one who makes hiring decisions will see it. Your decision to complete the form and your answer will not harm you in any way. If you want to learn more about the law or this form, visit the U.S. Department of Labor’s Office of Federal Contract Compliance Programs (OFCCP) website at www.dol.gov/ofccp.

How do you know if you have a disability?

A disability is a condition that substantially limits one or more of your “major life activities.” If you have or have ever had such a condition, you are a person with a disability. Disabilities include, but are not limited to:

  • Alcohol or other substance use disorder (not currently using drugs illegally)
  • Autoimmune disorder, for example, lupus, fibromyalgia, rheumatoid arthritis, HIV/AIDS
  • Blind or low vision
  • Cancer (past or present)
  • Cardiovascular or heart disease
  • Celiac disease
  • Cerebral palsy
  • Deaf or serious difficulty hearing
  • Diabetes
  • Disfigurement, for example, disfigurement caused by burns, wounds, accidents, or congenital disorders
  • Epilepsy or other seizure disorder
  • Gastrointestinal disorders, for example, Crohn's Disease, irritable bowel syndrome
  • Intellectual or developmental disability
  • Mental health conditions, for example, depression, bipolar disorder, anxiety disorder, schizophrenia, PTSD
  • Missing limbs or partially missing limbs
  • Mobility impairment, benefiting from the use of a wheelchair, scooter, walker, leg brace(s) and/or other supports
  • Nervous system condition, for example, migraine headaches, Parkinson’s disease, multiple sclerosis (MS)
  • Neurodivergence, for example, attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), autism spectrum disorder, dyslexia, dyspraxia, other learning disabilities
  • Partial or complete paralysis (any cause)
  • Pulmonary or respiratory conditions, for example, tuberculosis, asthma, emphysema
  • Short stature (dwarfism)
  • Traumatic brain injury
Please check one of the boxes below:
YES, I HAVE A DISABILITY, OR HAVE HAD ONE IN THE PAST
NO, I DO NOT HAVE A DISABILITY AND HAVE NOT HAD ONE IN THE PAST
I DO NOT WANT TO ANSWER

PUBLIC BURDEN STATEMENT: According to the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995 no persons are required to respond to a collection of information unless such collection displays a valid OMB control number. This survey should take about 5 minutes to complete.

Name Date
Human Check*