Breeder Catch Crew

Inghams Chickens; Matamata; On-site; NZD 42,000 - 68,000; Full time

Job summary

Inghams Chickens in Matamata, New Zealand, is seeking a hands-on Breeder Catcher to join our Breeder Catch Crew. The role involves catching, moving and releasing breeder birds between farms, end-of-life bird collection, and full shed cleanouts.

It requires physical stamina and willingness to work varied shifts. As a Level 1 team member, you will receive on-the-job training and progress toward Level 2, with a strong emphasis on animal welfare and biosecurity.

Qualifications

Responsibilities

• Catching, moving, and releasing breeder birds between farms to minimise stress
• Assisting transfer of stock from rearing to production farms
• Catching end-of-life birds and delivering to processing plant
• Full shed cleanout activities including hoses and water blasters
• Identifying sick or underperforming birds and notifying supervisor
• Maintaining biosecurity procedures and shed entry protocols
• Maintaining good housekeeping across sites
• Following Health & Safety requirements and company policies

Job description

We've been proudly bringing joy to tables and smiles to faces with the delicious food we've been crafting for over 100 years.

A large part of our strong growth and success is because we're always looking for new ways to do things and thinking about how we can create a better, more sustainable future world together.

Our success as an industry leader in providing deliciously good food means we can continue to invest in our future as we work towards becoming Australia and New Zealand's first choice for poultry.

Job Description

Inghams is looking for dedicated Breeder Catchers to join our Breeder Catch Crew across our Matamata sites. This is a physical role involving the catching and moving of breeder birds between farms, end-of-life bird collection, and full shed cleanout activities including hosing and water blasting. Work is carried out in varied conditions and across irregular shift patterns candidates must be genuinely comfortable working in these conditions and ready for sustained, repetitive physical activity throughout each shift.

As a Breeder Catcher, you'll join our Breeder Catch Crew and play a key role in safely moving and transferring breeder birds between farms while upholding Inghams' animal welfare and biosecurity standards. As a Level 1 team member, you'll receive extensive on-the-job training across a range of tasks as you build your skills towards Level 2. Your responsibilities will include:

• Catching, moving, and releasing breeder birds between farms in a way that minimises bird stress
• Assisting with the transfer of stock from rearing farms to production farms
• Catching end-of-life (EOL) birds and ensuring timely delivery to the Primary Processing Plant
• Participating in full shed cleanout activities, including the use of hoses and water blasters
• Identifying and humanely managing sick, injured, or underperforming birds in line with Animal Welfare standards
• Maintaining biosecurity procedures including correct foot bath use and shed entry protocols
• Maintaining good housekeeping practices across all sites
• Following all Health & Safety requirements and company policies

This role is physically demanding, requiring real stamina. Before applying, please consider whether you are:

• Physically fit and able to bend, lift, carry, and move continuously for the full duration of a shift
• Comfortable working in varied shed environments, including wet conditions during cleanout and water blasting
• Able to work varied and irregular shifts, including early mornings, nights, at short notice
• Resilient and able to maintain focus and performance in a physically taxing environment
• Reliable and dependable this is a time-sensitive operation where your crew relies on you
• A team player with a flexible attitude and a strong work ethic
• Genuinely comfortable handling birds, including the humane management of sick or injured birds
• Respectful of animal welfare and biosecurity requirements
• Willing to learnfull training is provided, no prior poultry experience required

We’re looking for people who arecurious, caring, courageous and committed to join us. People who want to contribute their best work every single dayand continue delivering delicious food that’s… Always Good.

Inghams values diverse experiences. If your skills align with some but not all of the listed requirements, we encourage you to still apply and explore the opportunity to join our team.

To be considered for this role, you must be currently located in New Zealand and hold valid working rights. We are unable to proceed with any application without both of these requirements in place.