Hunter Lankford

Major: Culinary Food Science
Minor/option/emphasis: Food and Society
Company/Organization: Mrs. Clarks Foods
Company/Organization website: https://www.mrsclarks.com/
Destination: Ankeny, Iowa
Timeframe: Summer 2021
Advisor/Coordinator Email: ebeirman@iastate.edu

Responsibilities

I was the Quality Inspector at Mrs. Clarks. A lot of my job duties were confirming that tasks were being done correctly and that HACCP/GMP were being followed. Most my time was spent in a lab testing samples of the product as it was being made to make sure it met our quality and safety limits. Besides testing the actual product I had to test equipment to make sure it was calibrated and working as intended. Documentation and communication were really important to make sure the correct information was getting recorded and told to people when they needed.

Accomplishments

I think my greatest accomplishment was when my manager was feeling sick and had to leave work in the middle of our shift leaving the quality assurance department under my shoulders. I was able to prevent and solve any issues that came my way and made sure the product was still getting made safe and met the standards set. It felt good to be able to run the quality assurance by myself with outside help and to be trusted to do so.

Learning experience

I think the greatest lessons I learned had to deal with the general knowledge of what a quality assurance role is like and all the various important aspects that go into a product to make sure it comes out within safety and quality specifications. You really cant skip the small details and its important that all the tiny parts for producing and shipping food are being done properly by the guidelines.

What advice would you give?

When it comes to school its important you try to learn in every class as even the classes that seem minor or not relevant can be impactful. When it comes to getting work experience it might be tiring news but the best way really is just to get yourself out there and use what resources are given to look for opportunities. You might not be able get all the opportunities you want but with more experience the easier it gets to look for new opportunities.

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