oke usa fruit company
Job Description:
- Type: Full time, regular position (~45 hours/week)
- Salary: Dependent on experience
- Benefits: 100% individual health insurance premium coverage; vacation, holidays and sick days; simple IRA plan with 2% of salary matched by Oke USA
- Location: Equal Exchange Headquarters, West Bridgewater, MA
In 2006, three entrepreneurial organizations came together to create Oke USA. Their goal was to introduce small farmer, Fair Trade bananas to the U.S. market. Today, Oke USA operates as the produce importing arm of Equal Exchange, importing fresh bananas, banana puree, and avocados. We invite you to join our small and dynamic team to grow Oke USA’s impact and mission. Together we can create a more just food system and a healthier planet. More Information: http://beyondthepeel.com/ & http://equalexchange.coop/
Duties and Responsibilities:
Produce support and logistics (70%):
Support Oke USA Produce Buyer with:
- Complex weekly international logistics of fresh produce from Latin America to the US
- Weekly orders, producer and steamship payments, ocean transport, and customs
- Projections, procurement, and inventory management
- Contract negotiations; ensure and improve contract compliance
- Maintenance of organic and Fair Trade documentation for supply chain audits; report sales and purchases to Fair Trade standards body
- Quality control and claim process
- Co-facilitating effective and fair business relationships with farmer coops through skype, phone and email communication, and visits
- Communicating and translating producer level work to larger team
- Pricing and financial analysis
- Other tasks associated with weekly import of banana, banana puree and avocados
Marketing and education (20%):
- Develop content about producer partners for sales and marketing; implement grassroots marketing efforts to build store and consumer awareness of brand mission through demos, social media, print, store staff trainings, educational lectures
Team (10%):
- Work with the Oke USA team to manage supply chain development and creative thinking around building alternative Fair Trade supply chains
Qualifications:
Required:
- Bi-Lingual Spanish/English. High level of fluency required
- Strong communicator; written and oral
- International experience
- Ability to manage complex logistics in Spanish & English
- Resiliency
- Problem solver
- Team player
- Ability to work independently
- Time management skills
- Ability to relocate to Boston / Providence area
- Willingness to travel
- Ability to work under high stress in a fast paced environment
- Attention to detail alongside the ability to think big picture
- Commitment to making a difference and passion for issues related to sustainable agriculture and alternative food systems!
- Flexibility and willingness to continuously learn by experience. This job may evolve as Oke USA grows and evolves
Preferred:
- 2 or more years in produce
- Knowledge of and experience with Latin American farmer cooperatives (strongly preferred)
- Experience with perishable commodity logistics
- Experience working in social-justice, food system and/or other mission based work
To Apply:
Email a cover letter, resume and brief answers to the three application questions below to: info@okeusa.com
Questions:
1. If you were a small-scale banana farmer, what would you want out of a relationship with Oke USA?
2. The top five banana companies (Dole, Chiquita, Noboa, Fyffes, Fresh Del Monte) account for more than 80% of world banana market. Oke USA operates at a minute scale in comparison. What are the some of the challenges associated with this difference in scale and how would you approach those challenges?
3. Oke USA must compete with other produce companies on the most conventional terms while also carrying out our Fair Trade mission. What do you bring to a company with this challenge?