Manitoba Harvest Hires Quality Control Manager

WINNIPEG, MANITOBAManitoba Harvest Hemp Foods & Oils has taken its practice of total quality management to a whole new level by hiring a veteran professional dedicated to this important aspect of their company. Bill Barker, who has spent his entire 25-year career in the QA/QC field, has been hired as the companys quality control manager. Before joining Manitoba Harvest, Barker spent 16 years as the laboratory manager/quality manager at an ISO 17025 accredited laboratory. Barker holds a B.S. in Microbiology and belongs to several professional organizations.

Although Barkers focus will be primarily on production quality, his role will include continuous quality improvement in all phases of the organization. Bill has a wealth of experience that Manitoba Harvest and our customers will benefit from, says Mike Fata, president, Manitoba Harvest. As a small company experiencing rapid growth and change, we all share a lot of responsibilities and will benefit from Bills focus on organization quality. The company was recognized this year in the Profit 100 list of the fastest growing companies in Canada.

Hemp foods are one of the hottest trends in the natural products industry, and the company wants to ensure that quality is not compromised as they continue to expand. Foods that offer omega-3 essential fatty acids, like hemp, are hot because medical evidence touting the health benefits continues to grow, notes Fata. Hemp foods also have a strong digestible protein profile, fiber and an abundance of vitamins and minerals. People are learning that hemp is a nutritional powerhousebut the product must be managed carefully to maintain the nutritional value and freshness, says Fata. That is why Bills role is very important.

About Manitoba Harvest
Manitoba Harvest grows, processes and packages all of its own products. Because of this advantage, they are better able to ensure freshness, price stability and quality for their customers. Freshness is critical because improperly processed, stored or packaged products can become rancid. To ensure nutritional value and flavor, Manitoba Harvest creates their products fresh on-demand daily. They stay focused by being a hemp food-only processor. Manitoba Harvest follows HACCP & GMP systems and utilizes an innovative freshness scalea monthly system of testing to ensure all products meet required quality. To further ensure freshness, the company uses a state-of-the-art atmospheric packaging process.
Manitoba Harvest contracts more than 6,000 acres of hemp seed production in Manitoba with more than 20 farmers that are shareholders in the company. They process the raw seed into hemp seed oil, shelled hemp seed, hemp seed nut butter and hemp protein powder at their kosher and USDA certified organic facility. Manitoba Harvest products are distributed to thousands of stores in the United States, Canada, Europe and Japan, and the products are sold as bulk ingredients to food and cosmetic manufacturers. For more information, please visit http://www.manitobaharvest.com.