Kitchen Staff

Job Title: Food Production Worker / Kitchen Staff

Location: Northbook, IL
Department: Food Manufacturing / Production
Employment Type: Full-time / Part-time / Shift Work
Reports To: Production Manager

Job Overview

We are seeking a reliable and detail-oriented Food Production Worker to join our kitchen manufacturing team. In this role, you will play a vital part in our large-scale food preparation operations. You will be responsible for preparing ingredients, operating commercial processing machinery, and ensuring all products meet strict quality, consistency, and safety parameters. The ideal candidate thrives in a fast-paced industrial environment, values strict adherence to recipes, and maintains an exceptionally clean workspace.

Core Responsibilities

• Batching & Ingredient Preparation: Measure, weigh, and portion large quantities of raw ingredients according to master manufacturing formulas and scaling sheets.
• Equipment Operation: Safely operate and clean commercial food processing equipment such as industrial blenders, mixers, kettles, slicers, and packaging lines.
• Quality Assurance: Monitor food products during the cooking or mixing processes to ensure consistent texture, appearance, temperature, and taste profiles.
• Food Safety & Compliance: Strictly follow Good Manufacturing Practices (GMP), HACCP guidelines, and local health department standards to prevent cross-contamination.
• Sanitation & Maintenance: Clean, sanitize, and assemble/disassemble production machinery and kitchen workstations before, during, and after shifts.
• Documentation: Accurately fill out daily production logs, batch records, temperature charts, and ingredient lot-tracking paperwork.
• Inventory Handling: Unload ingredient deliveries, rotate bulk stock using First-In, First-Out (FIFO) standards, and safely transport materials within the warehouse.

Key Skills & Qualifications

• Experience: Previous experience in a food manufacturing plant, commercial production kitchen, industrial baking, or high-volume catering environment is highly preferred.
• Regulatory Knowledge: Strong understanding of FDA food regulations, GMP, and general sanitation procedures.
• Technical Aptitude: Ability to read, understand, and precisely execute industrial scale-up recipes and equipment operational manuals.
• Mathematical Skills: Basic math skills required for calculating ingredient weight ratios and scaling batches.
• Teamwork: Excellent communication skills to coordinate fluidly with line operators, warehouse staff, and quality control team members.

Physical Requirements

• Ability to stand and walk for extended periods (up to 10 hours per shift).
• Ability to repetitively lift, push, and pull containers or raw materials weighing up to 50 lbs.
• Comfortable working in varied climate environments (e.g., ambient production floor, heated cooking zones, cold storage walk-in freezers).

Benefits & Perks

• Health, dental, and vision insurance plan designs after long term full-time employment
• Shift differentials for night or weekend schedules

Jaffa salads produces the highest quality salsa and Mediterranean products in the Midwest. We started in 2015 and have been constantly growing since. We Pride ourselves on keeping our customers happy. The key to that is having a prosperous work force and a positive work environment. Many of our employees have been with us for years. Once you join or company, you our part of our family.