Kozy Shack Enterprises, Turlock California Office
Top Jobs, p1
Kozy Shack cooks up sweet treats for major grocers, food services
By Heidi Howell
Special to Bee Advertising
Nothing
beats the taste of homemade pudding, right? Kozy Shack begs to differ,
with its line of puddings it calls “better than homemade.” The
company’s slow-cooked recipes are “all-natural, ready-to-eat, low fat
and very nutritional,” according to James Riggs, plant manager for Kozy
Shack Enterprises, Turlock California Office (www.kozyshack.com).
“We
manufacture
450,000 pounds of pudding a week at this plant,” Riggs says. “It’s a
neat operation.” He adds that pleasant aromas often waft
outdoors. “When we’re running banana and chocolate and you like those
flavors, it smells nice all the way out to the street.”
The
company also produces other pudding flavors: European, cinnamon raisin
and traditional rice puddings, tapioca, vanilla, dulce de leche
(caramel) and flan, which are marketed to major grocery chains, Costco,
hospitals and more. Kozy Shack also generates a line of gelatin
desserts called Gel Treats.
Based on Long Island in
Hicksville, New York, the company headquarters employs roughly 250
workers, while the Turlock division employs about 80. Found at each
location is a manufacturing facility and offices.
Some of the Turlock location jobs include:
• Corporate office: receptionist, customer service representative, inventory clerk, plant manager and corporate engineer.
• Non-production: warehouse, quality assurance and maintenance departments, each with its own manager and associates.
•
Production: cooking and filling departments, with cooks, batch
ingredient prep associates, a production supervisor, cooler attendants,
line operators and general production workers.
• Packing and palletizing: line captains, line associates, a supervisor and a pallet station attendant.
Quality
is a major focus, with inspections occurring at every stage. “Before we
pack the product, we inspect for quality, temperature, seals and
codes,” explains Ignacio Valdez, production manager. “We check the
integrity of each item before it’s boxed, making sure it’s clean and
has a tight seal.”
No product is stored on-site. Finished boxes are loaded onto refrigerated trailers and conveyed to third-party warehouses.
The
company runs two simultaneous production lines, with filling
operations happening 18 hours per day and packing 12 hours a day. There
are two work shifts: days, 6:30 a.m. to 3:00 p.m. and swings, 3:00 p.m.
to 12:00 midnight.
The majority of entry-level positions
require no special training. However, when hiring, “we like to see some
food processing knowledge and awareness of GMPs (good manufacturing
practices),” says Riggs. He also prefers candidates who have worked in
a fast-paced product environment.
“When I’m looking to hire, I
like to see previous experience,” Valdez adds. “Length of employment
and especially promotions get my attention right away. Dependability and flexibility are also very important.”
The
hardest job to fill is cook, which Riggs calls “a key position.”
“Because there are so many details, it can be hard to find the right
person,” says Riggs. “Working at a fast pace, cooks have to make 12
products, often keeping track of two or three at a time.”
Riggs
points out that the company has four cooks on staff. He relates that in
the past, Kozy Shack has promoted and trained from the existing
employee pool, however, he encourages those with the right background
and experience to fill out an application. Many other positions remain
“promote from within” opportunities.
Corporate
benefits include medical and dental insurance, flexible spending plan,
401K, tuition assistance, two weeks’ vacation, 11 holidays and five
personal days.
Riggs explains that management builds employee
satisfaction through rewards and listening to workers’ suggestions.
“We’re pretty employee-oriented,” he says. “We like to involve the
employees in daily decisions. For example, we hold frequent associate
meetings to let everyone know what’s going on, both here and at the
corporate office. Suggestions are encouraged.”
Although all
jobs are filled at present, interested persons are invited to stop by
the office to pick up an application. When a position opens, selected
candidates will be contacted from applications on file. Some positions
are listed with the Employment Development Department and/or The
Modesto Bee. For more information, call (209) 634-1077 or (209)
634-2131.
© HHWS for The Modesto Bee
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