Green Way Farms PLC is currently seeking a Compliance and Certification Officer to lead the certification activities across our company to help unlock the opportunity for thousands of small scale farms to sell their sustainably-grown produce across Europe and the Middle East.

This position will help shape the future of our environmentally- and socially-conscious agribusiness in Ethiopia, as it begins to scale. Ideal candidates have a passion for empowering smallholder farmers, a dedication to environmental sustainability, and the flexibility to adapt to the company’s changing needs as we scale to export over 500 tons of smallholder grown organic produce by 2025.

Green Way Farms is a specialty food company that produces premium, organic food products through a network of smallholder farms across Ethiopia. Our mission is to support sustainable farms and livelihoods for small scale farms across East Africa, while providing sustainable supply chains for our global customers.

 Green Way Farms currently operates its flagship operation in Butajira, SNNPR, with 100+ employees, 200+ Partner Farms, and plans to expand to multiple new geographies in 2021. With a growing team, farmer network, and global customer base, we're on the lookout for capable talent with a passion for smallholder grown food and a deep commitment to improving its roots.

Mission of Role

The Compliance and Certification Officer will ensure that Green Way Farm’s smallholder network and company farmland are compliant with all current and future horticulture certifications, ensuring that the company can continue to export our product globally. You will report to the Operations Director and work directly with a Certification Consultant on retainer for the remainder of 2020. Some of your responsibilities will include:

Certification

• Lead the company’s preparation for horticultural certifications, including GlobalGAP, GRASP, and EU Organic, as well as future certification opportunities
• Create and maintain all relevant documentation for these certifications
• Monitor the timing and expiration dates of all certifications, proactively preparing for and scheduling inspections

• Ensure 100% of smallholder and company farms remain compliant at all times by conducting regular internal audits recommending improvements and corrections to the Production team
• Organize and maintain the company’s certification documentation, making sure we have successful, efficient inspections
• Develop and lead compliance training for our Production and Processing teams
• Collaborate across teams to recommend improvements to company operations, to help improve how certifications are managed across our smallholder network, company farmland, and processing facilities

• Lead the process to register new crops and seed varieties to grow with our smallholder network
• Collaborate with the Ministry of Agriculture’s seed registration and testing protocols and agricultural research centers to ensure effective trials

Required Experiences/Skills

• Passionate about adapting commercial agribusiness practices to meet the needs of small-scale farmers
• Experience working on agribusiness certifications, such as GlobalGAP, EU Organic, BRC, Rainforest Alliance, GRASP, Fair Trade, ISO, or HAACP
• Willingness to solve problems and work independently, under regularly changing priorities and conditions
• Strong verbal and written abilities in the English language
• A strong attention to detail and  and meticulous organization skills for soft and hard copy documentation
• At least 5 years of experience working in commercial horticulture or agronomic production
• Undergraduate degree from a top-tier university with a minimum 3.0 GPA or equivalent

Preferred Experiences/Skills

• Direct experience with the rules and requirements of GlobalGAP and/or EU Organic
• Experience working at an early-stage organization
• Experience supporting certification in a smallholder farmer-oriented business
• Experience working in or collaborating with Ethiopian agriculture research centers
• Experience managing the registration of a new seed variety in Ethiopia

Reporting

The position reports to the Operations Director and then to the Production Director (upon her starting). The team currently retains a certification consultant to support each month. This consultant will remain engaged for the remainder of 2020 to prepare the Compliance Officer.

Location

This position is based in Butajira, SNNPR for the first 6-12 months. Additional locations will become available based on the company’s expansion plans in 2021.