Hometown Food Company, based in Chicago, IL, was formed by Brynwood Partners in August 2018 to acquire a portfolio of brands from The J.M. Smucker Company. The portfolio includes the exclusive U.S. rights to the iconic Pillsbury® brand’s shelf-stable baking products, including Funfetti, along with Hungry Jack®, White Lily®, Jim Dandy® and Martha White® brands. Pillsbury®, Funfetti and Hungry Jack® are leading national brands in the shelf-stable baking and breakfast categories and White Lily®, Jim Dandy® and Martha White® are regional brands known for flour, corn meal and grits. Categories include baking mixes (cake, brownie, cookies, muffins, etc.) ready-to-spread frostings, pancake and waffle mixes, breakfast syrup, and baking ingredients. Subsequent acquisitions include Birch Benders Pancake Mix and Frozen Waffles, DeWaffelbakkers Frozen Pancakes, and Chef Boyardee Shelf Stable Meals.
Hometown manufactures most of its products from its 650,000 square foot facility in Toledo, OH where the company employs 255 full-time employees. For more information on Hometown, please visit www.hometownfoodcompany.com For more information on Brynwood Partners, please visit www.brynwoodpartners.com
Position Overview:
The Regulatory Specialist will be joining a private equity backed growth business with iconic brands, strong retail presence, and outstanding manufacturing capabilities. This role will be approximately 60% regulatory and 40% systems and documentation support. The Regulatory Specialist is responsible for labeling, nutrition, and technical accuracy of product labels. This role also supports product development documentation and PLM system management, including specification creation and maintenance within TraceGains.
Responsibilities include developing and maintaining ingredient and finished product specification, supporting cross-functional documentation needs, maintaining product development records and preparing competitive benchmarking analyses related to claims, nutrition, directions and product positioning.
Hometown Food Company is accelerating innovation across all categories including baking, breakfast, and canned foods, creating opportunities for disruption and differentiation in the market. This position is based at the company’s headquarters in Chicago, Illinois, and is required to be in the office 5 days a week to support strong day-to-day collaboration across cross-functional teams.
Responsibilities:
The Regulatory Specialist works closely with Food Scientists, Marketing, Procurement, Project Management, Legal, and Quality teams, while providing support to additional cross-functional teams as needed.Provides nutritional, labeling, and regulatory expertise to support business objectives while ensuring regulatory compliance and responsible marketing practices.Maintains foundational knowledge of raw materials, ingredient functionality, standard of identity, and nutrition principles as they relate to labeling and product development.Maintains TraceGains data and specifications to support FDA and USDA label compliance requirements.Independently develops and validates the technical label copy through application of FDA and USDA regulations and the standards and principles of nutrition and food science.Independently reviews and substantiates product claims and provides regulatory guidance to the organization.Reviews and approves label art files in collaboration with cross-functional teams.Stays current on FDA and USDA regulations and assess potential impacts to product labeling across the portfolio.Provides technical guidance in response to product-related consumer inquiries, as needed.Identifies and implements opportunities for continuous improvements related to labeling, regulatory compliance, nutrition, and team operations.Develops and implements Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs) and associated training material.Supports the development and growth of internal regulatory team capabilities.Provides regulatory and technical input throughout all phases of new product development, from concept through commercialization.Leads assigned product development projects from concept through commercialization.Leads or supports the planning, execution and reporting of plant trials and product validations for new products and reformulations.Files and maintains product development related documentation.Performs additional duties and special projects as assigned.Travel as requested up to 20% as neededQualifications:
Bachelor’s degree in Food Science, Nutrition, Biology, Engineering or related field required, Master’s degree preferred.
Minimum 5 years of experience within a food manufacturer environment, including at least 3 years applying government labeling regulations within a Consumer Packaged Goods (CGP) company.
Strong knowledge of FDA food labeling regulations and comfort with regulatory interpretation.
Strong knowledge or USDA food labeling regulations and labeling approval procedures.
Experience supporting export compliance requirements, including Canada and Mexico.
Experience with TraceGains, ESHA Genesis or similar food labeling program, SAP, Microsoft Office suite, label review software (Dragonfly or similar), SharePoint, and knowledge of PLM system
Demonstrated ability to work cross-functionally within a regulatory, labeling or product development environment.
Proven ability to manage multiple priorities and deadlines in a fast-paced environment.
Personal Characteristics:
Demonstrates professionalism, sound judgement, ethical values, and strong collaboration skills within Regulatory and the cross-functional teams.Strong verbal and written communication skills.Great attitude and drive: Ability to roll up sleeves and get things done.Thrives in a fast-paced environment and can effectively manage ambiguity.Passion for food and innovation.Strong organizational and time management skills. 