National Food Quality Control and Safety Specialist

IMPORTANT NOTICE\: Please note that Closure Date and Time displayed above are based on date and time settings of your personal device

FAO seeks gender, geographical and linguistic diversity in its staff and international consultants in order to best serve FAO Members in all regions.

• FAO is committed to achieving workforce diversity in terms of gender, nationality, background and culture
• Qualified female applicants, qualified nationals of non-and under-represented Members and person with disabilities are encouraged to apply
• Everyone who works for FAO is required to adhere to the highest standards of integrity and professional conduct, and to uphold FAO's values
• FAO, as a Specialized Agency of the United Nations, has a zero-tolerance policy for conduct that is incompatible with its status, objectives and mandate, including sexual exploitation and abuse, sexual harassment, abuse of authority and discrimination　　
• All selected candidates will undergo rigorous reference and background checks
• All applications will be treated with the strictest confidentiality
• FAO staff are subject to the authority of the Director-General, who may assign them to any of the activities or offices of the Organization.

Organizational Setting

The main aim of the FAO country offices, which are headed by an FAO Representative, is to assist governments to develop policies, programmes and projects to achieve food security and to reduce hunger and malnutrition, to help develop the agricultural, fisheries and forestry sectors, and to use their environmental and natural resources in a sustainable manner.

The position is located in Iran.

The globalization of food supply and the rapid growth of e-commerce have created complex supply chains that pose challenges to food authenticity. A lack of universally accepted definitions complicates the ability to distinguish misleading practices from legitimate marketing, while ensuring authenticity necessitates specialized tools and expertise. Preventing food fraud from happening in the first place is safer and more cost effective than trying to detect it after the fact. Legal frameworks can, and often do, place the primary responsibility to prevent fraud on food business operators, such as through traceability requirements and requirements to adhere to good agricultural practices. Food vulnerability assessments is a regulatory framework to improve the private sector capability to prevent food fraud. This means that the adoption of the Vulnerability Analysis and Critical Control Point (VACCP) system can lead to development of a documented procedure to identify and mitigate risks of fraudster activities.

Focusing on saffron, a high-value spice susceptible to authenticity challenges, this project aims to investigate and enhance saffron authenticity within its intricate value chain in Iran, which produces approximately 90% of the world’s saffron.

To achieve these goals, the present project TCP/IRA/3902 selected saffron as a pilot value chain to examine the level of food authenticity in the country and is designed in three main parts as follows\:

• Analysis of current saffron authenticity and traceability status in supply and value chains.
• Implement mitigation measures and vulnerability assessment to formulate saffron defense action plan and assure saffron authenticity through good practices and standards.
• Support the enabling environment for innovations and technologies that assure saffron authenticity.

Reporting Lines

Under the overall guidance and supervision of the FAO Representative a.i. in the I.R. Iran, and the Budget Holder, and direct supervision of FAO-Iran OiC and technical supervision of the Project’s Lead Technical Officer (LTO), and in close collaboration and coordination with FAO-Iran Programme team and National Experts, the National Food Quality Control and Safety Specialist will undertake the following tasks\:

Technical Focus

Evaluating the Saffron value chain including vulnerability analysis and critical control points with attention to the authenticity and traceability mechanisms.

Tasks and responsibilities

• Under reporting line contributes to the development of project strategic frameworks, annual workplan and respective monitoring and reporting mechanism in line with the project document and project implementation plan.
• Support the development with a situation analysis to identify gaps and the areas of focus to strengthen authenticity controls and traceability mechanisms with attention to saffron value chain by reviewing national and internationally recognized safety, authenticity legislations and standards including Codex Alimentarius Commission (CAC) supported by FAO and WHO.
• Collates a list, based on publications and engagement with value chain experts in Iran, of potential points of adulteration in saffron supply chain, ensures the accomplishment of effective and comprehensive assessment of Vulnerability Analysis and Critical Control Point (VACCP) and prioritize control measures against the identified vulnerabilities and put in place appropriate control measures to reduce the identified vulnerabilities.
• Collaborate with Lead Technical Officer to prepare the saffron defense mitigation and authenticity action plan and the required toolkit (SDMST).
• Drafts the requisite Technical Specifications (TS) for the items which need to be procured or Assist with the preparation of Terms of Reference for affiliate workforce required for the project.
• Assists in Preparing minutes for project meetings including Project Task Force (PTF) and the Project Steering Committee Meetings (PSC) etc. and drafting respective reports.
• Provide support in the coordination of the task force field missions including ensuring timely visa acquisition, required documentation, and necessary correspondences with national and international experts, consultants and stakeholders.
• Ensures timely provision of inputs for administrative personnel, financial services, technical support services, equipment/supplies and other needs related to project Operations.
• Prepares timely correspondence between FAO and project partners related to the project implementation, and ensures they are translated into the appropriate language.
• Assists in the preparation of Quarterly Implementation Reports (QPIR), delivery reports and any other periodic and ad hoc reports and ensures their timely submission to project management including FAO-M&E Unit.
• Participates in field missions, as required and supports project task force during field missions with required translations between non-Iranian task force experts and national counterparts.
• Assists in updating the required reporting of data/documentation in the Field Programme Management Information System (FPMIS) for the Project; analyzes and summarizes data from various sources, including FAO corporate systems, such as IMIS (Integrated Management Information System), COIN (Country Office Information System) and FPMIS (Field Programme Management Information System), Data Warehouse, country data bases, etc.
• Ensures comprehensive advocacy, visibility and required media coverage of the project in consultation with FAO communication and advocacy unit.
• Performs other related duties as required and backstop Programme Support Specialist when and where needed.

CANDIDATES WILL BE ASSESSED AGAINST THE FOLLOWING

Minimum Requirements

• University degree in Food Industries, Food Science and Technologies, Food Safety, Nutritional Science, Microbiology (with a focus on food safety), Agricultural science (with a specialization in food quality), Chemistry, Environmental Health or a related field as appropriate for the assignment.
• Minimum 4 years’ experience in quality management of food safety standards (such as HACCP, ISO, etc.).
• National of the Islamic Republic of Iran or resident in the country with a regular work permit.
• Working knowledge of English and Farsi

FAO Core Competencies

• Results Focus
• Teamwork
• Communication
• Building Effective Relationships
• Knowledge Sharing and Continuous Improvement

Technical/ Functional Skills

• Knowledge and familiarity with Food Safety Regulations including understanding of local, national, and international food safety standards.
• Skill in using statistical methods to monitor and control the quality of food production processes.
• Ability in work planning, monitoring and maintaining accurate records, preparing reports, and generating documentation related to food safety practices and quality control.
• Ability to evaluate and prioritize risks in food production to implement appropriate safety measures.
• Ability to interact tactfully and effectively with multiple institutional actors in diverse sectors and at diverse levels, to communicate messages and to promote dialogue.
• Analytical skills to identify problems in food safety and quality and implement corrective actions effectively.
• Familiarity with various laboratory practices related to food testing, such as chromatography, spectroscopy, and pH measurement.
• capacity to conduct fieldwork and the ability to work in teams and establish working relationships central and local government institutions and civil society organizations.
• Good knowledge of and working experience with government institutions
• Experience and good knowledge in food safety guidelines and standards including GHP (Good Hygiene Practices), Codex Alimentarius, Food Labelling Regulations and Traceability Standards.
• Good command of computer skills (MS Word, Excel, PowerPoint, Internet).

Please note that all candidates should adhere to FAO Values of Commitment to FAO, Respect for All and Integrity and Transparency.

ADDITIONAL INFORMATION

• FAO does not charge a fee at any stage of the recruitment process (application, interview meeting, processing).
• Incomplete applications will not be considered. If you need help or have queries, please contact\: Careers@fao.org
• Applications received after the closing date will not be accepted.
• Only language proficiency certificates from UN accredited external providers and/or FAO language official examinations (LPE, ILE, LRT) will be accepted as proof of the level of knowledge of languages indicated in the online applications.
• For other issues, visit the FAO employment website\: http\://www.fao.org/employment/home/en/
• Appointment will be subject to certification that the candidate is medically fit for appointment, accreditation, any residency or visa requirements, and security clearances.

HOW TO APPLY

• To apply, visit the recruitment website at Jobs at FAO and complete your online profile. We strongly recommend that your profile is accurate, complete and includes your employment records, academic qualifications, and language skills
• Candidates are requested to attach a letter of motivation to the online profile
• Once your profile is completed, please apply, and submit your application
• Candidates may be requested to provide performance assessments and authorization to conduct verification checks of past and present work, character, education, military and police records to ascertain any and all information which may be pertinent to the employment qualifications
• Incomplete applications will not be considered
• Personal information provided on your application may be shared within FAO and with other companies acting on FAO’s behalf to provide employment support services such as pre-screening of applications, assessment tests, background checks and other related services. You will be asked to provide your consent before submitting your application. You may withdraw consent at any time, by withdrawing your application, in such case FAO will no longer be able to consider your application
• Only applications received through the FAO recruitment portal will be considered
• Your application will be screened based on the information provided in your online profile
• We encourage applicants to submit the application well before the deadline date.

If you need help or have queries, please create a one-time registration with FAO’s client support team for further assistance\: https\://fao.service-now.com/csp

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