Summary
Overview
Work History
Education
Skills
Certification
Affiliations
Timeline
Generic

Melinda Needham

Janesville,WI

Summary

Dynamic Food Safety & Quality Assurance Specialist with over 8 years of experience driving culinary product development, regulatory compliance, and operational excellence. Proven ability to lead cross-functional teams through the full lifecycle of product innovation, from ideation and testing to rollout and performance monitoring. Adept at blending data-driven insights with hands-on execution to enhance menu quality, guest satisfaction, and system consistency.

Overview

10
10
years of professional experience
1
1
Certification

Work History

Food Safety and Quality Assurance Specialist

Broaster Company
06.2021 - Current
  • Oversaw supplier audits across 12 locations, achieving compliance with QA standards.
  • Led product tastings and sensory evaluations for 15+ concepts, supporting 4 successful market launches.
  • Reduced customer complaints by 18% through data-driven corrective actions.
  • Developed training programs that decreased onboarding time by 40%, improving system-wide consistency.
  • Authored and collaborated on 20+ product specifications, aligning cost, prep, and operational requirements.
  • Served as HALAL & HACCP Coordinator and Advanced SQF Practitioner.

Plant Lead & Quality Assurance

B&G Foods
10.2019 - 07.2020
  • Supervised 175 employees across 8 departments, maintaining 98% on-time production.
  • Conducted lab and sensory testing on 10+ product lines, ensuring brand consistency and quality.
  • Supported scale-up of 2 new products, increasing production efficiency by 12%.

Floor Trainer / Picker

Staples
10.2017 - 09.2019
  • Provided targeted coaching to boost individual performance across warehouse operations.
  • Enhanced team engagement through problem-solving and feedback initiatives.
  • Evaluated training outcomes to inform ongoing curriculum improvements.

Quality Process Operator

Frito Lay
05.2015 - 09.2017
  • Ensured flavor consistency across 20+ SKUs, maintaining defect rates below 0.5%.
  • Managed allergen compliance for seasonal runs, resulting in zero incidents.
  • Maintained sanitation and assembly protocols through documented clean-in-place (CIP) procedures.

Education

Associate of Applied Science - Laboratory Food Science

Blackhawk Technical College
Monroe, WI
05.2023

Skills

  • Culinary Product Development
  • Quality Assurance & HACCP Compliance
  • Sensory & Recipe Evaluation
  • Regulatory Documentation (FDA, USDA, SQF)
  • Supplier Audits & Approval
  • Training Program Implementation
  • Data Analysis & Continuous Improvement
  • Team Leadership & Cross-Functional Collaboration
  • MS Excel, PowerPoint, Office Suite

Certification

  • Product Development Certificate — Institute of Food Technology
  • HACCP & Advanced SQF Practitioner
  • Fundamentals of Sensory Science — IFT
  • FSPCA Preventative Controls (PCQI)
  • Food Defense & OSHA 30hr General Industry
  • Leadership Certification — NSLS
  • ServSafe

Affiliations

  • National Society of Leadership & Success (NSLS)
  • Institute of Food Technology (IFT)
  • International Association of Food Protection (IAFP)

Timeline

Food Safety and Quality Assurance Specialist

Broaster Company
06.2021 - Current

Plant Lead & Quality Assurance

B&G Foods
10.2019 - 07.2020

Floor Trainer / Picker

Staples
10.2017 - 09.2019

Quality Process Operator

Frito Lay
05.2015 - 09.2017

Associate of Applied Science - Laboratory Food Science

Blackhawk Technical College

Similar Profiles

CREATE PROFILE