Manager, Food Manufacturing in Emeryville, California at Upside Foods, Inc.

UPSIDE Foods is the world's leading cultivated meat company. We’re building a new food system that moves meat forward by rethinking it from the source. By growing real meat from animal cells, we give people the choice to enjoy the meat they love without killing animals. Our work directly addresses the environmental and ethical impacts of the modern food system while supporting global food and nutrition security. It’s a vision legendary conservationist Jane Goodall called "one of the biggest ideas offering planetary hope."

Based in Emeryville, California, UPSIDE Foods has achieved numerous industry-defining milestones, including making the first cultivated meat to be green-lit by both the FDA and the USDA and sold in the United States. Our team has won numerous industry awards, including TIME World’s Top GreenTech Companies 2026, New York Times’ Good Tech Awards, FastCo’s Next Big Thing in Tech, and the Best and Brightest Companies to Work For.

To date, UPSIDE Foods has raised more than $600 million in funding from a diverse group of leading U.S. and global investors, including Cargill, SoftBank, Temasek, Tyson and Whole Foods.

About the role

The Food Manufacturing Manager owns conversion and formulation at EPIC — the point where cultured cells and tissue become ready-to-eat meat products in a USDA-regulated establishment.

This role involves both continued establishment of the process as well as driving efficiency of the existing process. You will be commissioning complex processing equipment alongside fabricators and design engineers, verifying the processes that run on it, and building the operating framework that makes output reliable and repeatable. At the same time you will be running production to schedule, in a facility with a federal inspector on the floor.

The technical bar is high because the product is Ready to Cook. Post-lethality exposure means Salmonella and Listeria control are the governing hazards, and every decision about equipment design, sanitation, line flow, and product handling either supports that or undermines it. You need to understand why, not just follow the SOP.

You will work directly with senior leadership, our integrated supply chain, and every operational function in EPIC. You will also be a principal point of contact in our partnership with USDA-FSIS.

What you'll do

Production leadershipLead daily operations of the Food Manufacturing space, including labor and materials planning, run strategy, and throughput against scheduleDesign and lead the production processes required to create Finished Good meat products made of cultured cells and plant ingredients in a regulated facilityOwn manufacturing KPIs — OEE, yield, throughput, first-pass quality, cost per pound — and the operating reviews where they are discussedBuild run strategies that sequence product, sanitation, and changeover to maximize hygienic run time rather than raw uptimeOwn the manufacturing operating budget and contribute to capital planning for the spaceEquipment commissioning and reliabilityInterface directly with fabricators and providers of complex industrial meat processing machines on reliability requirements, qualification requirements, hygienic design, and costEvaluate equipment against hygienic design principles (3-A, EHEDG) and reject designs that cannot be sanitized to the standard the process requiresPartner with Engineering and Facilities on preventive maintenance strategy, spare parts, and reliability-centered improvementOperate complex machines and instruments used for the production and storage of harvested meat in a USDA-regulated facilityRegulatory executionServe as a principal operational contact for in-plant FSIS personnel, accompany inspection walks, and answer to what is happening on the floorExecute to the HACCP plan, SSOPs, and preventive controls, ensuring every CCP monitoring activity is performed and recorded at the time of the activityOwn the operational side of Noncompliance Record response — investigate root cause, implement corrective action, and produce the evidence that closes itOwn lot control and traceability such that a hold can be scoped accurately and quicklyMaintain readiness for unannounced inspection at all times, including off-shift and weekend runsProcess development and scale-upPartner with Food R&D on technology transfer, translating bench and pilot processes into manufacturable, validated, inspection-ready operationsLead process capability work — identify sources of variation, quantify them, and close themOwn change control from the manufacturing side, assessing food safety, regulatory, and operational impact before implementationCollaborate with EPIC functional departments to solve problems with a data-driven approach and create improvements that ensure process and mechanical reliabilityPlanning and supply chainPartner with Supply Chain and work with ERP tools to forecast workflows so throughput requirements are met without interruptionParticipate in S&OP, translating demand signals into labor, materials, and capacity plansOwn production scheduling against maintenance windows, sanitation cycles, and minimum staffing requirementsDrive material yield and waste reduction across the conversion processSystems, documentation, and teamSupport drafting and review of SOPs, SSOPs, and GMP programs, and own the accuracy and timeliness of batch records and production documentationSupport the SQF rollout from the manufacturing side, including process mapping, nonconformance handling, and internal audit readinessBuild and develop the Food Manufacturing team, including operator training, qualification, and trainer designation with records that demonstrate competencyBuild a best-in-class culture of safety, and facilitate efficiency modeling for the Food Manufacturing teamEnsure accurate timekeeping for non-exempt employees, that meal and rest periods are provided and taken, and that concerns raised on the floor are escalated immediately rather than held

Qualifications

Required

B.S. in food process engineering, industrial engineering/operations, or a related fieldDemonstrated high-volume production experience in a food manufacturing environment, ideally with 5+ years in a regulatory environmentDirect experience in a USDA-FSIS inspected establishment, including working alongside on-site inspection personnelHands-on experience commissioning and qualifying processing equipment, not just operating itWorking knowledge of HACCP, GMP, and sanitation requirements in a regulated facilityExperience with ERP systems; Microsoft Dynamics preferredAble to dissect complex manufacturing operations and direct a team to achieve specific end results on tight schedulesGreat organizational and project management skills, and consistent communication that ensures reliability with a safety, efficiency, and quality mindsetAbility to recognize opportunities for improvement and influence others to make change

Preferred

Meat or poultry product experienceHygienic and sanitary design expertise Aseptic processing, cell culture, or fermentation backgroundLean, Six Sigma, or statistical process control capabilityHACCP certificationExperience taking a facility from pilot through commercial launch

Physical requirements

Must be able to work in refrigerated production spaces. Must be able to carry up to 50 pounds. Must be able to sit or stand for long periods while monitoring operations and performing daily tasks. Must be able to don Personal Protective Equipment — safety glasses, gloves, hair restraints, footwear, lab coats or coveralls — on a daily basis, as well as hearing and dust protection as needed. Off-shift and weekend coverage is required during production runs, commissioning, audits, and incidents. Reasonable accommodations will be made to enable individuals with disabilities to perform the essential functions of this role.

Who you'll work with

This role is based in our EPIC facility and will most frequently interact with FSQA, FDA Manufacturing, Sales, Food R&D, Supply Chain, Product and Brand, upstream Operations, Engineering and Facilities, Planning, and Warehouse — as well as external fabricators, equipment vendors, and USDA-FSIS personnel.

Key contributions in the first yearBuild a working relationship with USDA-FSIS officials grounded in transparency, and establish the operational cadence that supports itPartner with engineering teams and suppliers to fully commission and qualify complex meat processing machines, then tune the systems for reliability and throughputEstablish the verification and documentation package behind our Finished Good processes so that critical limits are scientifically supported and defensible on inspectionDevelop and execute manufacturing KPIs aligned to internal OKRs, and install the operating rhythm that reviews themImprove the existing operational framework for safety, quality, efficiency, and reliability — and leave behind a documented system rather than personal knowledge

Compensation Range: $145,000 - 165,000

*Pay may vary depending on factors including job-related knowledge and skills.

UPSIDE Foods is an equal opportunity employer and we value diversity at our company. We do not discriminate on the basis of race, religion, color, national origin, gender, sexual orientation, age, marital status, veteran status, or disability status. Our company-wide mission is to create a product for everyone, so we are deeply committed to having teams and leaders that reflect this mission.