Introducing Valeo Snackfoods, the powerhouse behind some of the nation's favourite snack brands! With an impressive lineup including KETTLE® Chips, Metcalfe’s® popcorn, Foxes, Poppets, Yellow Chips and Barratt classics like Wham!, Fruit Salads, Black Jacks, Refreshers, Sherbet fountain, and Dip Dab, we've got something for everyone's taste buds.

Are you ready to lead a team dedicated to ensuring the highest standards of food safety and quality? Join us at Valeo Foods UK, located in Gateshead, where we create iconic products like Kettle, Manomasa Tortilla, and Metcalf. We're looking for a passionate and experienced Site QA Manager to champion our commitment to excellence.

As the Site QA Manager, you'll play a pivotal role in fostering a collaborative food safety and quality culture within our organisation. Leading the QA and operations teams, you'll provide direction and support to ensure that our systems and processes consistently meet the highest standards. Your dedication to continuous improvement will drive excellence throughout our operations, enhancing customer confidence and satisfaction.

Key Responsibilities:

Leadership and Management:

• Promote cross-functional collaboration to make food safety and quality everyone's responsibility.
• Provide leadership and direction to the QA team, fostering continuous improvement in our practices.
• Develop and coach team members, setting clear objectives and identifying training needs.
• Lead HACCP initiatives and ensure ongoing compliance with standards.

Standards and Compliance:

• Ensure factory compliance with customer policies, external certifications, and GMP standards.
• Drive a "right first time" approach to production, managing incidents through effective investigations.
• Oversee internal audit programs and manage non-conformances.
• Manage allergen management, risk assessment, and verification processes.
• Handle customer complaints effectively, validating and verifying shelf life parameters for launched products.

KPI Management:

• Measure, trend, and report against internal and customer KPIs, ensuring ownership and action.
• Drive activities to meet and exceed all KPIs related to quality and compliance.

Customer Engagement:

• Manage external audit programs and support technical audits during customer visits.
• Collaborate with commercial teams to ensure effective communication with customers.
• Handle customer complaints and queries promptly and effectively.

Qualifications and Experience:

• Degree or equivalent in Food Science or related discipline.
• Experience in FMCG or similar environment, with team management experience.
• HACCP Level 3 qualification and experience in retailer quality systems.
• Knowledge of BRC compliance and audits.
• Strong project management skills.

Qualities and Skills:

• Strong leadership abilities with excellent communication and presentation skills.
• Exceptional relationship-building skills, both internally and externally.
• Up-to-date knowledge of technical advances and consumer trends.
• Passion for coaching and developing teams.
• Diligent, detail-oriented, and skilled in problem-solving.
• Driven to succeed with excellent organizational and multitasking abilities.

If you're ready to lead a team dedicated to upholding the highest standards of food safety and quality, we want to hear from you. Come join us at Valeo Foods UK and be a part of our commitment to excellence.