About us.

We're Tovala, a food-tech company completely reinventing home cooking to save consumers time. Through an innovative combination of hardware, software, and food, we give our customers a way to enjoy really good, good-for-you meals without sacrificing time to do whatever matters to them. We've amassed a loyal, rapidly growing following in just three years, radically changing the day-to-day lives of people across the country and successfully creating a new model for the food industry. We're looking for great people to join our team of hard-working, food-loving nerds.

About the job.

We’re looking for a Food Production Buyer to join our team on a full-time basis. In this role, you will be responsible for food procurement activities which are a a fundamental component of Tovala’s business model. This person will ensure that we purchase and receive all raw ingredients in a timely manner so that production runs smoothly each week. This individual will work with the Inventory Manager & Strategic Sourcing Manager to take inventory, purchase tactfully, and coordinate deliveries. This role is perfect for you if you thrive in a fast-paced environment and are interested in helping with all things food procurement for a growing company.

Note: This position will be on-site at our production facilities in Chicago & Carol Stream, IL as business dictates

How you'll spend your time at Tovala:

• Provide forecasts to vendors to stay ahead of any potential shortages.
• Maintain status for delivery items--verify delivery schedules and coordinate resolution of logistic issues with receiving staff. Work closely with Receiving, Quality and Planning teams to ensure materials are moving through departments as scheduled.
• Review on-hand inventory and production requirements to manage daily and weekly purchasing needs. This includes working with the Inventory Manager to track par levels, spoilage, and aging.
• Maintain a log of purchase orders, reconciling receivables, and invoice payments to ensure accuracy.
• Develop a plan to mitigate interruptions in product acquisition. Work with the Strategic Sourcing Manager to secure secondary or even tertiary suppliers for high risk, essential ingredients.
• Communicate shortages or delays in product arrival that would affect the production schedule and strategize the recovery plan to expedite or fill-in elsewhere.
• Follow Safety, GMP, Food Safety and Quality policies
• Implement and execute a vendor performance rating system - Create metrics to monitor and evaluate vendor performance using key attributes (on-time/ complete delivery, adherence to specifications, accurate pricing, etc)

• 3+ years in a food procurement role, experience in production environment or large scale catering operation preferred
• Bachelor’s degree in Logistics, Supply Chain, Food Science, or a related field preferred
• Excellent time management skills, strong follow-through and follow-up skills, supported by professional references
• Ability to think and act critically about processes and supply chain systems with a focus on continuous improvement and staying ahead of market trends
• Strong project management, problem solving and planning skills
• Strong verbal and written communication skills
• Ability to use MSOffice, Google Suites (Drive, Sheets, Docs, etc.)to create useful and transparent electronic tools for demand planning on materials and packaging.
• Food certifications and licenses as required by local regulatory agencies
• Must be able and willing to work in refrigerated coolers (~38°F) and Freezers (~0F)
• Ability to kneel, reach, bend, and lift (up to 50 pounds) throughout the work day and to work on your feet for the entirety of the day