Country: Lebanon
Closing date: 24 May 2018
Background:
Land O'Lakes International Development is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit helping communities around the world build economies by strengthening agriculture from farm-to-folk, helping businesses grow, and linking farmers to markets. Since our start in 1981, we have been leveraging nearly 100 years of expertise in dairy, animal nutrition, crop inputs and agricultural insights from our close affiliate, Land O’Lakes, Inc., a farmer-owned agribusiness committed to fulfilling its purpose of feeding human progress.
Our team is made up of nearly 350 employees who are committed to market-led approaches, and passionate about collaborating locally to create lasting inclusive economic growth. By unlocking the potential of agriculture for the last 36 years, the lives of more than 3 million people have been transformed through nearly 300 programs in more than 80 countries.
Project Description:
Land O’Lakes International Development is seeking candidates for the position of Food Safety Specialist for an anticipated project to increase the competitiveness of key actors in the agricultural and food processing industry. The project will focus on improving capacity to enter and compete in the marketplace, production systems, and practices in food safety, food quality, marketing, and access to markets. This position will coordinate and support technical assistance, develop scopes of work for volunteer and short-term technical assistance, evaluate investment partner needs and improvement plans, and assist investment partners to achieve greater product quality and safety and thereby access to markets.
Primary responsibilities of the position include but are not limited to the following:
- Responsible for the program efforts to improve food safety of investment partners in the food processing and produce sectors who compete in the domestic and export markets by assisting in the execution of improvement and production upgrading plans and activities.
- Monitors all efforts to improve the institutional and policy environment for food safety within beneficiary entities. S/he will help entities create/amend/adopt internal quality management systems.
- Seeks alliances with the private sector, industry and educational groups, and government stakeholders who influence the provision of high quality and safe products. S/he will take steps to assist entities in the development and improvement of production systems and supply relationships along entire value chains.
- Advise all grantees on food quality and safety assessment, protocols, and provide guidance on food safety protocols required by importing countries such as GCC, EU, USA, and individual countries where Lebanon exports.
- Assist entities in achieving a goal of continuous improvement, internal learning, and assessment leading to, where appropriate, certification. Work with suppliers to establish programs and activities to ensure the integrity of their suppliers and stablish new linkages around the common goal of improving the marketability and quality of food products.
- Work with all stakeholders to increase farmer and agribusiness awareness of economic opportunities associated with adoption of food safety protocols.
- Work with Land O’Lakes International Development and volunteer technical expertise as they support enterprises through mentoring relationships, training, and enterprise-focused technical assistance.**
Reporting & Supervision:
The Food Safety Specialist reports to the Business Development and Marketing Senior Manager and collaborates closely with the Chief of Party (COP).
Required Skills and Qualifications:
- Bachelor’s degree in food safety, business administration, public policy, agriculture or related field.
- Solid understanding of both United States and European food safety regulations and requirements.
- 5+ years’ experience on development and execution of food safety protocols; preferably on international donor-funded projects.
- Experience in food inspection protocols, export requirements, and food safety and quality certification programs; Familiarity with GFSI and other global FSQ platforms is desirable.
- Strong communication and interpersonal skills, including proven ability to work within a government agency and influence change.
- Ability to create and maintain effective working relations with host country government personnel, stakeholders, NGO partners, and international donor agencies.
- Strong interpersonal, writing and oral presentation skills in English.
- Ability to work independently and manage the needs of multiple clients.
- Relevant computer software skills (including, at a minimum, the standard applications in MS Office).
How to apply:
https://lol.avature.net/Careers/JobDetail/Lebanon-Food-Safety-Specialist-Lebanon/1199