Manager, Bridgeville Agriculture

The Pictsweet Company is growing! A 4th generation family owned company established in 1945, Pictsweet is a frozen vegetable producer with agricultural roots. We are recruiting a Manager of Agriculture at Pictsweet's facility in Bridgeville, DE. This position manages all aspects of planning, contracting, monitoring, harvesting, and delivery of raw vegetables for the Bridgeville facility.

• Keep current on all aspects pertaining to agricultural production of vegetable crops available in growing region.
• Have a current up to date knowledge of pesticides and their usage
• Provide supervision of cost effective production practices that promote top qualities and quantities of raw product.
• Provide input for contracts with pricing and parameters to obtain quantities and qualities of desired raw product.
• Obtain contracts from growers that will fulfill or exceed standards and requirements required for food safety.
• Prepare schedules for planting and harvest to assure orderly flow of acceptable raw product to the plant.
• Assist in weekly updates on all crops with regards to projections on quantities and qualities with regards to budget.
• Set up, supervise and carryout planned pre-harvest procedures to predict prime harvest time.
• Coordinate daily quantities and qualities of incoming product in accordance with daily plant requirements.
• Maintain current status of grower’s pesticide usage on all crops delivered to the plant using CDMS software
• Plan, organize and implement research projects.
• Seek ways to improve operations through automation and system refinement.
• Outline agriculture practices to be used for each crop and ensure compliance.
• Responsible for developing new crops for potential program implementation.
• Ensure that meaningful personnel safety training measures are properly communicated on a scheduled basis and are documented.
• Monitor and ensure compliance with all regulations relating to food safety and personnel safety such as FDA, USDA, OSHA, and TOSHA. Ensure compliance with all other regulations and laws affecting the company (business law, trade secrets, personnel practices, etc.).
• Follow company policies and procedures, which includes but is not limited to SOPs, Employee Handbook, Food Quality Policies, GAP’s, and HACCP.
• Manage all aspects of Agricultural audit compliance (Sustainable Ag, FDA, USDA, third party audits, etc.) including record keeping, prepping, and reporting.
• Provide direction and leadership to accomplish company’s production and research goals and objectives.
• All other duties as assigned.

Qualifications:

• Bachelors’ Degree in Agriculture or related field like Ag Business, Plant and Soil Science, or Agronomy preferred.
• Related experience as Field Representative a plus, Farm Manager experience preferred.
• 3-5 years’ experience in crop and/or vegetable production as well as directly managing and supervising team members.
• Must be able to work long hours in a physically demanding environment.
• Must be willing to work flexible hours, including weekends and holidays, as needed.
• Must live within geographical area as stipulated by the company.

Physical Environment Factors:

This position requires working in both an office and farm environment.  Must possess the ability to work in extreme temperatures (hot and cold) as needed.  Use of PC, telephone and other office machines.

This job will require some travel in the Delaware/Maryland/Virginia area.