Certification Officer - Farming and Growing

Location: Bristol (with hybrid working), United Kingdom.

Salary: £28,800 to £30,800 per annum

Employment Type: Full-time (37.5 hours), Fixed-Term Contract (12 Months)

About Us

Certification is the UK’s leading sustainability certification body, offering a range of best-in-class organic and sustainable certification schemes across food, farming and forestry. 

We operate in over 70 countries, managing thousands of clients across supply chain networks covering organic food, farming, beauty and textiles to sustainable forestry and high-integrity carbon schemes in emerging nature markets. 

Our people are highly skilled ranging from auditors and inspectors to technical, commercial and marketing experts. We have ambitious growth targets and work to deliver excellence for all clients in the UK and beyond. 

About the Opportunity 

We are looking for a passionate and professional individual to join our Farming and Growing team as a Certification Officer. The role will require you to support with the delivery of our organic farming schemes, and carry out certification and account management services to a portfolio of UK farming and growing clients (licensees). The role is hybrid with 40% of the month spent in the office and 60% working from home. We are looking for an individual who is efficient and can provide excellent customer service to our clients.

About You 

• You must have a qualification and/or background in farming, ideally with some knowledge of organic production methods. We will also consider candidates who have equivalent knowledge but some limited experience working in the farming sector.  
• You must have knowledge about the organic standards, specifically in relation to farming and growing.
• You need to be confident and decisive, a good communicator and be able to work with different people from a variety of communities and backgrounds, and have experience in face-to-face communications and providing good customer care. 
• You need to be computer literate and having experience using CRM/database systems/Microsoft Office is desirable.
• You need to have excellent organisational and time management skills, with close attention to detail.
• Full UK driving licence is desirable for travel to events/account visits

Our Benefits 

• We offer a range of financial and lifestyle benefits to all our employees, including:  

• 27 days annual holiday increasing to 30 days with length of service plus bank holidays (pro rata for part time) 

• Pension scheme with ethical investment options and employer contribution increasing with length of service 

• Free membership of the Soil Association and discounts on organic produce 

• Volunteer days to give back to the local community or support green initiatives 

• Family friendly policies and flexible working  

• Cycle to work scheme 

• Sociable and engaging workplace of professionals that share a passion for healthy, sustainable lifestyle and produce 

To Apply 

Click ‘apply now’ to submit your CV and Cover Letter application form. Please note we look at applications on arrival and reserve the right to close this vacancy early. 

Please check your junk/spam folder if you do not receive a confirmation email upon submitting your application. All candidates will subsequently receive an email to confirm whether they have made it through to interview stage. 

For any queries, please contact recruitment@soilassociation.org 

Please note we do not accept CVs or Cover Letters. 

We know the value of diversity in nature and want it in our organisation. We recognise that diverse backgrounds and experiences will bring a fresh perspective to our work. If you're not sure about applying, please get in touch with us for a chat. 

Thank you for your interest in supporting our work at the Soil Association.