Full-Time

Quality Control / Quality Analyst Technician

Posted on 9/8/2026

Plantible Foods

Plantible Foods

51-200 employees

B2B plant-based protein ingredients from lemna

Compensation Overview

$50k - $60k/yr

+ Relocation support

Eldorado, TX, USA

In Person

Relocation support is available if necessary.

Bachelor's, Associate's

Category
Manufacturing Quality & Test (1)
Required Skills
HACCP
GMP
Quality Assurance (QA)
Microbiology

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Requirements
  • Previous experience in a laboratory, quality assurance/quality control, food manufacturing, pharmaceutical, or biotechnology environment is preferred; relevant academic laboratory, internship, or co-op experience may also be considered.
  • Familiarity with laboratory testing, sample preparation, analytical calculations, dilutions, and accurate data recording.
  • Basic understanding of good manufacturing practices, hazard analysis and critical control points, food safety, sanitation, and contamination control.
  • Ability to recognize unusual results, follow established procedures, and escalate concerns appropriately.
  • Ability to work independently while collaborating with Operations and Quality teams.
  • Ability to work in both a laboratory and active manufacturing environment.
  • Some prior experience in food, beverage, or pharmaceutical manufacturing.
  • Associate or bachelor's degree in food science, Chemistry, Biology, Microbiology, Biotechnology, or a related scientific discipline is preferred.
Responsibilities
  • Perform analytical chemistry and physical testing on raw materials, in-process samples, and finished products, including protein analysis, dry weight or total solids calculations, spectrophotometric testing, pH, moisture, color, density, and other product specifications.
  • Prepare samples, standards, reagents, and laboratory equipment according to approved analytical methods.
  • Calculate, review, record, and communicate laboratory results accurately and promptly escalate out-of-specification or abnormal findings.
  • Prepare, label, receive, retain, and manage raw-material, in-process, and finished-product samples.
  • Conduct Food Safety and Quality GEMBA walks and verify compliance with good manufacturing practices, hygiene, sanitation, and contamination-control requirements.
  • Coach production employees on good manufacturing practice procedures, sampling procedures, hygiene standards, and food safety expectations.
  • Support the Environmental Monitoring Program through environmental sampling, documentation, trending, and corrective-action follow-up.
  • Verify critical control point and operational prerequisite program monitoring activities according to the hazard analysis and critical control points or Food Safety Plan.
  • Support FSSC 22000, FSMA Preventive Controls, Gluten-Free, Halal, Kosher, and Non-GMO compliance programs.
  • Calibrate and verify laboratory equipment, including balances, pH meters, thermometers, colorimeters, spectrophotometers, and other analytical instruments.
  • Maintain laboratory testing records, sampling logs, calibration records, environmental monitoring records, and traceability documentation.
  • Support non-conformance investigations, root cause analysis, corrective and preventive action activities, mock recalls, and traceability exercises.
  • Collaborate with Operations, Maintenance, and Food Safety and Quality teams to troubleshoot and resolve food safety and product quality issues.
Desired Qualifications
  • Experience with spectrophotometers, pH meters, analytical balances, moisture testing, or similar laboratory instrumentation.
  • Basic knowledge of microbiology and environmental monitoring.
  • Willingness to learn new analytical methods, equipment, and food safety systems.
  • Strong attention to detail, organization, and documentation discipline.
  • Strong communication skills and willingness to work closely with production teams to reinforce food safety and good manufacturing practice expectations.

Plantible Foods produces a plant-based protein ingredient called Rubi Protein for other food makers. It grows lemna, an aquatic plant, in its own aqua-farms to create a scalable, sustainable protein that is free from major allergens and has a neutral taste and color. The product is sold as an ingredient to food manufacturers for use in baked goods, plant-based meats, dairy alternatives, and nutritional supplements, enabling them to formulate new or improved plant-based products without worrying about allergen issues. The company differentiates itself by controlling its supply chain through in-house aquafarming and by delivering a neutral, versatile protein that can be incorporated across many product categories. Its goal is to meet increasing demand for sustainable, healthy foods by expanding production capacity and broadening its customer base among B2B food manufacturers.

Company Size

51-200

Company Stage

Debt Financing

Total Funding

$108.7M

Headquarters

San Marcos, California

Founded

2016

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Simplify Jobs

Simplify's Take

What believers are saying

  • August 6, 2026 financing adds $35 million for fivefold capacity expansion.
  • Walmart featured Plantible in October 2025, validating retail-channel relevance.
  • ICL Food Specialties and Flax 4 Life already commercialize Rubi Protein ingredients.

What critics are saying

  • Plantible depends on one Texas site; any greenhouse outage halts supply expansion.
  • The 50-greenhouse buildout demands execution discipline before customer commitments outpace output.
  • Duckweed protein remains niche; if major customers like ICL stall, revenue concentration worsens.

What makes Plantible Foods unique

  • First FDA no-questions letter for isolated RuBisCO, dated February 5, 2026.
  • Rubi Protein combines neutral taste, allergen-free profile, and strong emulsification for manufacturers.
  • Eldorado, Texas greenhouse farming decouples protein production from arable land and weather.

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Benefits

Health Insurance

Dental Insurance

Vision Insurance

Unlimited Paid Time Off

Paid Holidays

401(k) Retirement Plan

Relocation Assistance

Flexible Work Hours

Growth & Insights and Company News

Headcount

6 month growth

-3%

1 year growth

-5%

2 year growth

-3%
Green Queen Media
Aug 6th, 2026
USDA backs Plantible Foods' $35M raise to scale duckweed Rubisco protein capacity fivefold

Plantible Foods has raised $35 million in USDA-backed financing to expand production of its duckweed-derived Rubisco protein. The San Diego startup secured $25 million in debt from X-Caliber Rural Capital, a USDA-licensed lender, plus $10 million in equity from RA Capital and existing investors including Piva Capital. The funding will finance up to 50 new greenhouses at Plantible's 100-acre Texas facility, increasing capacity fivefold to over 100,000 tonnes annually. The company's Rubi Protein ingredient, which received FDA clearance six months ago, offers functional properties matching egg whites whilst delivering a 70% nutritional yield. Duckweed grows in two to three days with minimal water use and contains all nine essential amino acids. Plantible has raised $92 million to date.

Associated Press
Feb 19th, 2026
FDA clears Plantible's RuBisCO protein for commercial use in first for sustainable food ingredient

Plantible Foods has received a "No Questions" letter from the FDA regarding its GRAS notice for Rubi Protein, making it the first company to gain FDA acknowledgment for isolated RuBisCO protein in food applications. The regulatory milestone clears the way for large-scale commercial adoption. Rubi Protein is derived from water lentils grown in enclosed greenhouses and contains approximately 85% protein by weight. The ingredient offers neutral taste, high solubility and strong emulsification properties, suitable for baked goods, beverages, dairy alternatives and plant-based products. Plantible opened its first commercial facility in Eldorado, Texas, last year and plans to expand capacity to meet growing customer demand. The San Diego-based company was founded by Tony Martens and Maurits van de Ven.

AgFunder
Aug 12th, 2025
Plantible Foods seeks funding to expand

Plantible Foods' first commercial facility in Eldorado, Texas, is now fully operational, extracting RuBisCO protein from lemna (duckweed). After securing $30 million in Series B funding last year, the company seeks additional financing to triple its current capacity of thousands of metric tons of biomass annually. An upgraded protein filtration system and a proprietary high-yield lemna strain have been introduced to enhance cash flow positivity, according to CEO Tony Martens.

FinSMEs
Jan 16th, 2025
Chipotle Invests in Plantible's Growth

Chipotle Mexican Grill has invested in Plantible, a San Marcos, CA-based company developing plant-based protein. The investment amount was not disclosed. Plantible plans to use the funds to expand its operations and development efforts. The company produces Rubi protein™ from Lemna, aiming to offer a cleaner, healthier, and allergen-friendly alternative to animal-based proteins and synthetic ingredients.

PR Newswire
Dec 11th, 2024
Elemental Impact Injects $18.6M Into Climate Technologies Creating Jobs And Local Economic Impact

Non-profit's strategic investment tackles the funding gap between climate innovation and widespread adoption.HONOLULU and SAN FRANCISCO, Dec. 11, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- Elemental Impact , a leading non-profit technology investor, announced today $18.6 million in investments across 16 companies deploying projects in Texas, Nevada, Oklahoma, Colorado, Tennessee, and international markets.This announcement is part of the non-profit's larger investing strategy that includes initial investments to build a pipeline of critical climate companies and projects, follow-on funding to promising projects with local impact, and the newly announced Greenhouse Gas Reduction Fund (GGRF) program for later-stage commercialized technologies, for which investments are expected to be announced in the new year.These investments represent one of the many ways Elemental continues to tackle the $150B "Scale Gap," a critical challenge and funding shortfall climate companies face during first-of-a-kind (FOAK) and early commercial deployments. While these technologies have proven their potential, this funding gap often results in a lack of necessary capital to scale up these innovations, creating a barrier to the widespread adoption."We are seeing extraordinary demand for capital from entrepreneurs who are ready to scale, but who face a critical funding gap," said Dawn Lippert, CEO of Elemental Impact. "These 16 new investments prove that philanthropy can enable projects in rural towns, Tribal lands, urban areas, and wild ecosystems -- and unlock significant private investment."After vetting more than 7,000 companies this year, Elemental selected companies representing four emerging themes: accelerating the next era of U.S. manufacturing, building a resilient supply chain, strengthening rural and tribal access, and scaling a regenerative food system. They will now join a portfolio of more than 160 companies that have created over 10,000 jobs, all working to scale their solutions and create meaningful economic benefits in local communities