Her Story
About Chelsea
Chelsea Pipkin serves as Vice President of Quality Assurance for a botanical processor in North Carolina. She launched her career in 2012 at a dry corn mill facility in southeast Missouri, beginning as a laboratory technician focused on method development and analytical processes before being promoted to supervise the laboratory. Her work supported major brands including General Mills and Frito-Lay, and she led compliance efforts aligned with the Food Safety Modernization Act. She later served as Quality Assurance Manager at a Bunge oil value chain plant in New Jersey, handling vegetable oil blends and shortenings. Since 2018, she has been based in Kentucky, expanding her expertise in global quality, food safety, and pharmaceutical standards. Pipkin specializes in quality management systems and compliance science, strengthened by cross-functional leadership across departments. Her notable achievements include earning a Certificate of Excellence from the State Department of Agriculture at SEMO Milling, implementing BRC certification at GenCanna as the first in the CBD space, and achieving four consecutive years of zero non-conforming findings under ISO 9001:2015 at OBX. She obtained her PCQI certification in 2016, holds a master's degree, completed an online certificate in biostatistics in 2026, and began pursuing a doctoral degree from the University of Louisville in 2024.
Her Interview
Ten minutes with Chelsea
01What do you attribute your success to?
A combination of my personal qualities like discipline and attention to detail, along with mentors in past positions who recognized my potential and gave me opportunities to attend trainings or take on new tasks, and the support from my husband and family who encouraged me to pursue my career path and further my education.
02What advice would you give to young women entering your industry?
Do not get discouraged. What you have in mind as success isn't always the outcome of success, so do not stop when things get hard or challenging. There is not a problem that's unsolvable, just some are more complex than others. Keep persevering and communicating, and do not stop trying, that things will work out one way or another.
03What are the biggest challenges or opportunities in your field right now?
Challenges in quality assurance and food safety often revolve around building and strengthening culture. It requires clean work environments and following procedures, but success comes when people have buy-in to the program. It can be challenging to get across-organization buy-in from hourly operators to mid-management to executive leadership.
04What values are most important to you in your work and personal life?
Honesty, genuine interactions, accountability, and hard work with a good work ethic.
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