Rita Harkless

Rita Harkless has extensive experience in food safety and quality assurance within the poultry industry. Currently, Rita serves as the POW Co Chair at Perdue Farms, advocating for women and promoting a diverse workplace. Rita's roles at Perdue Farms also include Director of Food Safety and QA Program Compliance, where responsibilities involve interfacing with program owners and writing food safety programs and SOPs. Prior to Perdue Farms, Rita held various positions including Corporate FSQA Process Control Manager, Regional Food Safety Manager, Complex Quality Assurance Manager, and HACCP Coordinator II. Earlier in Rita's career, roles included Corporate Labeling & Specification Manager at Allen Harim Foods and HACCP Coordinator at Mountaire Farms. Rita holds an MBA in Organizational Leadership and a BS in Business Management from Wilmington University, in addition to education from Delaware Technical Community College.