Deputy Quality Manager

C&D Foods is one of Europe’s leading own label pet food manufacturers producing a range of wet and dry pet foods.

C&D Foods has grown to become one of the industry’s leading pet food producers. C&D Foods has 9 production facilities across 7 Countries (Ireland, the UK, France, Denmark, Austria, Spain, and The Netherlands) and 2 sales offices located in Manchester and Italy.C&D Foods’ Headquarters is in Mullingar, county Westmeath.

At our C&D Foods site in Edgeworthstown, Co. Longford we have a requirement for passionate Deputy Quality Manager to join our team and continue to ensure exceptional product quality.

Role Overview

• Provide support to the Quality Manager in leading and maintaining the Food Safety and Quality Management systems across the site.
• The Deputy Quality Manger will play a key role in ensuring compliance with all legal, customer, and company standards, driving continuous improvement, and supporting cross-functional teams to uphold high standards.

Key Responsibilities

• Assist the Quality Manager in overseeing the implementation, maintenance, and continual improvement of the site’s Quality Management System (QMS) and Food Safety Management System (FSMS), including HACCP and GMP.
• Act as a key contact for Accreditation audits, Regulatory audits, Customer audits and Regulatory inspections.
• Lead the Quality Team in the absence of the Quality Manager, ensuring smooth day-to-day operation.
• Conduct internal audits and support investigations into non-conformances, customer complaints, and product issues.
• Collaborate with Production, Engineering and R&D teams to maintain and improve product quality.
• Assist in managing traceability system.
• Own and manage site Pest Control Program:
• Liaise with external pest control contractor to ensure effective monitoring and resolution of pest activity.
• Ensure pest control compliance with customer, legal, and certification requirements.
• Lead site training and awareness on pest prevention for relevant personnel.
•  Own and manage site Cleaning and Hygiene Programme:
• Liaise with external cleaning contractors to ensure effective cleaning and hygiene standards.
• Ensure effective cleaning schedules, methods, and documentation.
• Validate cleaning processes through swabbing.
• Conduct regular hygiene inspections and cleaning audits of production and support areas.
•  Lead, manage, and develop a team of QA’s (x4) across the site:
• To include recruitment and selection, training and development and performance monitoring.
• Assist with the development and participate in site Food Safety Culture and Food Defence activities.

Key Relationships

• Quality Manager
• General Manager
• Production Manager
• Maintenance Department
• R & D Department
• QA Technician Team

Personal Competencies

• Excellent communication, interpersonal skills and presentation skills.
• Strong attention to detail and problem-solving abilities.
• Leadership skills with the ability to motivate and support a team.
• Well-organized with good time management and the ability to multitask under pressure.

Professional Requirements

• Degree qualification in Food Science or related discipline.
• Minimum 5 years’ experience in a quality role within the food manufacturing industry.
• Strong working knowledge of HACCP, food safety legislation and GFSI schemes (BRCGS).
• Strong working knowledge of key retailer standards.
• Competent in root cause analysis, risk assessment, and continuous improvement tools.
• Proficient in Microsoft Office and quality management systems.
• Internal Audit Training.

Career Prospects

• The potential to be the successor for the role of Quality Manager.

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