Plant Purchasing Agent at Leprino Foods Company in Lubbock, TX

Within our brand new state-of-the-art 600-person manufacturing facility in Lubbock – Leprino is seeking a Purchasing Agent to coordinate the purchase of materials, supplies, ingredients, packaging, maintenance items, and services that keep plant operations running efficiently. This position builds productive supplier relationships, supports competitive sourcing, controls purchasing and freight costs, and helps plant teams follow consistent and ethical purchasing practices.

What You’ll Do:

• Source and select suppliers for non-national maintenance parts, raw materials, supplies, services, and non-stock purchases, including competitive bidding when appropriate.
• Create accurate and timely purchase orders with clear item descriptions, pricing, freight terms, quantities, and delivery requirements.
• Coordinate purchasing quantities and order timing to reduce unit costs while maintaining the materials and supplies needed for plant operations.
• Build collaborative relationships with suppliers and plant teams to support product quality, service, availability, and purchasing needs.
• Negotiate payment terms for non-national purchases and support purchasing decisions that balance cost, quality, service, and supply requirements.
• Maintain required supplier documentation, including insurance certificates, safety certificates, and confidentiality agreements, within applicable purchasing systems.
• Coordinate with corporate teams to establish annual product and freight standards for applicable non-national and non-lot-controlled items.
• Reduce inbound freight costs by evaluating freight rates, shipment quantities, truckload opportunities, and LTL purchasing decisions.
• Confirm purchase orders with suppliers and monitor orders through delivery, with particular focus on food ingredients and other production-critical materials.
• Analyze supplier performance across on-time delivery, purchase order and invoice pricing, quality, and service.
• Support consistent purchasing practices across the facility and provide guidance to plant employees on purchasing policies and procedures.

You Have At Least (Required Qualifications):

• A bachelor’s degree in Accounting, Economics, or a related field, or comparable relevant work experience.
• Three years of experience in purchasing, procurement, inventory management, or a closely related area.
• Working knowledge of purchasing, inventory management, and auditing practices.

We Hope You Also Have (Preferred Qualifications):

• Experience supporting purchasing or procurement within dairy, cheese, food, or beverage manufacturing.
• Experience purchasing ingredients, packaging, maintenance materials, plant supplies, or contracted services in a manufacturing environment.
• Experience working with ERP-based purchasing, purchase order, inventory, or supplier management systems.
• Working knowledge of food safety and sanitation practices.

At Leprino, we believe in equal employment opportunity and make employment decisions based on each individual’s unique talents, experience, skills, and knowledge; we do not discriminate on the basis of any personal characteristics. We know we are better together and are committed to creating an inclusive and supportive culture in which all employees can thrive.

Offering You In Return:

A chance to be part of a global team of individuals passionate about producing and delivering high-quality products that help feed and nourish families around the world. Leprino could not be where it is today without our incredible employees. That is why we share in our success together by rewarding you for your hard work. Hiring great people who are in it for the long run is our goal. Through competitive salaries and bonuses, life, medical/dental/vision coverage, voluntary benefits, employee assistance programs, wellness incentives, tuition assistance, vacation, ten paid holidays, sick time, paid parental leave, annual merit increases, as well as the LFC Profit-Sharing & 401(k) plan. Your impact will be noticed and rewarded, as you seek to further our company, our customers, and one another.

Our Story:

Leprino’s history dates back to the 1950s, when Jim Leprino first started making small batches of mozzarella for local markets and eateries in the Little Italy neighborhood of Denver. We’ve grown a bit since then. Today, Leprino is the world’s largest manufacturer of mozzarella and lactose, and a leading producer of whey protein. Still owned by the Leprino family, our sights are set to be the “World’s Best Dairy Food and Ingredient Company.” From a small corner grocery store we have grown to over 5,500 employees throughout the globe. Will you join us on our journey?