Regulatory Affairs Specialist

Position Title: Regulatory Affairs Specialist
Position Type: Regular - Full-Time
Position Location: Toronto HQ
Grade: Grade 04
Requisition ID: 36446
In every role, McCainers are ambitious, curious, and passionate about creating exceptional work experiences - together. With a customer-first mindset, we make doing business with McCain easy.
About the role.
The Regulatory Affairs Specialist is responsible for product composition and label regulatory compliance for finished goods manufactured and sold in the Canadian market.
The position supports the region's commercial goals and includes key day-to-day business continuity activities, e.g. ingredient & formula reviews, labelling & marketing claim exploration. The Regulatory Affairs Specialist is also responsible to represent & defend McCain activities with external stakeholders for the US and Canadian markets.
The role is expected to be 85% internally focused on supporting the regional R&D team & business operations. The other 15% will be externally focused and include work in Technical Committees of Canadian Trade Associations.
What you'll be doing.
Product Compliance

• Acts as expert on food legislation and guidelines issued by regulatory authorities in Canada (national/regional):
  - Interprets legislation requirements, shares industry best practices, and recommends regulatory positions.
  - Develops and maintains regional procedures to approve product formulas, ingredients, labels, and other marketing material aligned with business requirements.
  - Supports business partners (Procurement, R&D, Marketing, etc.) on new product development, product reformulations, product claims exploration and label redesigns as needed to ensure regulatory compliance.
  - Liaises with Global and other regional regulatory contacts to review compliance on export/import requirements.
• Conducts regulatory risk assessments (regulatory investigation, data collection, industry calibration, etc.) in collaboration with other cross-functional teams, e.g. Global Regulatory, QA/Food Safety, Legal, GR/EA teams.
• Advocates and sponsors training initiatives to support cross-functional team members and their contribution to regulatory compliance for continued efficiency and accuracy.

Legislation Monitoring & Communication

• Coordinate the monitoring of regional regulatory environment changes and/or evolution on product composition, ingredient, and food labelling requirements.
• Communicates and works with cross-functional team members to estimate impact and evaluate state of readiness.
• Monitors and communicates regional emerging legislation to Food Safety team members on microbiological parameters, food contaminants, and Food Safety Management programs, as required.

External Activities

• Participates in relevant Technical Committees of Trade Associations for the Canadian Market
• Establishes and maintain working relationships with Canadian regulatory authorities, as appropriate.

What you'll need to be successful.

• Degree or equivalent in Food Science, or related technical discipline.
• Preferred minimum 5 years of experience working within a large global food manufacturing organization, preferably in Regulatory Affairs.
• Demonstrated knowledge and experience in Regulatory Affairs in Canada:
• knowledge of product marketing claims substantiation and other labelling information.
• Awareness of food safety requirements (microbiological standards, food contaminants).
• A general understanding of the U.S. regulatory landscape (FDA, USDA) is a strong asset
• Proven participation in Trade Associations and working committees to review regulatory and industry initiatives and positively influence regulatory outcomes.
• Record of having led transformative initiatives, demonstrating an ability to influence the business to achieve positive results.
• Ability to influence key stakeholders and peers. Ability to stand alone, set clear standards and hold other accountable to a critical requirement.
• Courage to have difficult discussions with groups from all levels of the organization.
• Strong team player, who can effectively interface with all levels of management and teams across the business.

About the team.
The Regulatory team partners with R&D, Quality, Marketing, and Procurement to enable the business while ensuring regulatory integrity. This Specialist role brings Canadian expertise and operational excellence into daily decision-making and innovation strategy for the North American region as well as collaborates with our global teams.
About McCain.
Click Here to learn more about McCain and how we provide you with opportunities to make an impact that matters.
Leadership principles.
At McCain, our leadership principles guide how we engage with customers, collaborate as a team, and achieve success. We focus on understanding customer needs, driving innovation, empowering people, and taking ownership to clear obstacles and deliver results.
The McCain experience.
We are McCain. This statement is a testament to our collective strength and our individual value. Your contributions play a vital role in our success. Our winning culture is rooted in authenticity and trust, empowering us to bring out the best in one another. Here, you'll find opportunities to learn, grow, and thrive. Join us and experience why we're better together.
Compensation Package : $69,700.00 - $93,000.00 CAD annually + bonus eligibility
The above reflects the target compensation range for the position at the time of posting. Hiring compensation will be determined based on experience, skill set, education/training, and other organizational needs.
Benefits : At McCain, we're on a mission to create a winning culture that puts employee safety and wellbeing at the heart of what we do, every day. We understand and appreciate that each person's needs are unique and ensure our benefits & wellbeing programs reflect that. Employees are eligible for the following benefits: health coverage (medical, dental, vision, prescription drug), retirement savings benefits, and leave support including medical, family and bereavement. Wellbeing programs include vacation and holidays, company-supported volunteering time, and mental health resources. Coverages are aligned to country, provincial and state governing plans and can vary by work level, location and nature of the role. Additional benefit details available during the application process.
Your well-being matters to us, and we're here to provide you with the necessary resources to support you in being your best self at work - and at home.
McCain Foods is an equal opportunity employer. As a global family-owned company, we strive to be the employer of choice in the diverse communities around the world in which we live and work. We recognize that inclusion drives our creativity, resilience, and success and makes our business stronger. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, religion, color, national origin, sex, age, veteran status, disability, or any other protected characteristic under applicable law.
McCain is an accessible employer. If you require an accommodation throughout the recruitment process (including alternate formats of materials or accessible meeting rooms), please let us know and we will work with you to find appropriate solutions.
Your privacy is important to us. By submitting personal data or information to us, you agree this will be handled in accordance with McCain's Global Privacy Policy and Global Employee Privacy Policy , as applicable. You can understand how your personal information is being handled here .
Job Family: Research & Development
Division: Global Research and Development
Department: Regulatory NA
Location(s): CA - Canada : Ontario : Toronto
Company: McCain Foods (Canada)