Veterinary Technical Supervisor Reliever, Waikato
Ministry for Primary Industries (MPI)
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Benefits offered by this job
Job summary
MPI Verification Services in the Waikato/Hamilton region is seeking a Veterinarian Reliever (Veterinary Technical Supervisor Reliever). The role requires NZ veterinary registration, a full NZ driver’s licence, and expertise in verification of food safety and biosecurity to support export standards.
You will lead verification activities and coordinate with operators and MPI teams, ensuring timely corrective actions.
Qualifications
- Must be a NZ registered veterinarian or eligible for NZ registration.
- Hold a full and clean NZ driver’s licence.
- Strong verbal and written communication and analytical reasoning skills.
- Demonstrate integrity, ethics, resilience and adaptability.
- Experience persuading, influencing, teamwork, planning and organising.
- Computer literacy with standard software (Word, Excel, email).
Responsibilities
- Travel around the Waikato region to manage verification for food safety, market access and biosecurity.
- Lead and coordinate verification activities across multiple establishments.
- Manage operator relationships and act as a conduit between operators and MPI.
- Tailor communication to operators from plant managers to frontline staff.
- Attend and facilitate internal, external and market access reviews; resolve findings with MPI and operators.
- Ensure efficient use of time and resources.
Skills
Education
Tools
Job description
Role type: Permanent, full-time
Location: Waikato/Hamilton region
Salary range & band: VTS Salary Range 6: $118,437 to $148,046 per annum
Starting salary will be dependent on skills and experience of the successful applicant.
In addition to salary, we offer overtime, penal time, and shift allowances.
The role sits within the Establishment group of the Verification Services directorate. MPI Verification Services (MPI VS) provides a range of food safety and biosecurity verification and certification services to support market access strategies and setting standards.
The purpose of this position is to travel around the Waikato region to manage verification that confirms food safety objectives, market access and biosecurity requirements have been met at the establishment thereby permitting the issue of official assurances.
The position requires sufficient experience in processing and industry standards management and to operate in a professional and confident manner. You would also be expected to lead and where necessary coordinate verification activities over a varied range of animal products as well as manage the key primary relationship with operator and act as a conduit between operators and MPI.
- Ensure that official assurances issued for export products are valid and withstand third party reviews through audit and verification of the operators and their processes.
- Ensure that operators put into place timely and effective corrective and preventative actions.
- Work successfully with & support the regional MPI team, as well as the wider MPI team such as the technical team and other external stakeholders such as farmers.
- Work with operator personnel of different levels from plant manager to frontline staff and will be able to tailor your communication with them effectively.
- Attend and facilitate internal, external and market access reviews. Demonstrate the process to these reviewers and facilitate, in conjunction with the operator and MPI, resolution of any review findings.
- Ensure efficient use of time and resources.
In addition to the professional variety and responsibility the role offers, it is also considered a lucrative opportunity within Veterinary Services, with that it reflects the scope, coverage, and flexibility required of a reliever position.
The Waikato Establishment area, centred in Hamilton, sits at the heart of one of New Zealand's most productive agricultural regions and plays a critical role in the export red meat sector. Together, these establishments provide essential processing capacity for surrounding farming communities and service key international markets.
There are several major processing premises within comfortable driving distance of Hamilton, including AFFCO Horotiu, Greenlea Hamilton, Greenlea Morrinsville, Silver Fern Farms Waitoa and Silver Fern Farms Te Aroha, with potential coverage of sites in Te Kūiti such as Te Kūiti Meats or Universal Beef Packers. This provides variety in work environments while maintaining a stable Hamilton base.
The Waikato Establishment team is stable, and highly experienced, with staff working independently across multiple sites while remaining well connected and supported. As a reliever in this region, you are the visible face of MPI, engaging daily with operators to ensure regulatory requirements are met and supporting confidence in New Zealand's export systems.
The work delivered across Waikato directly contributes to MPI's strategic outcomes of Prosperity, Visible Leadership, and Protection, within an export red meat sector generating approximately $12 billion in annual revenue. Key aspects of the role include animal welfare oversight, biosecurity response, and engagement with the rural sector through the mandated farm verification programme, providing variety, challenge, and strong community connection.
With Waikato's central location, the role also offers strong connectivity to Auckland, the Bay of Plenty, and neighbouring regions.
- Watch some of our team describe why they love the role that they are in and their journey into a career with Verification Services – Click Here
- Watch the team answer some questions about their roles - Veterinary Careers in New Zealand with MPI Verification Services | VSGD Interview the Team | Videos & Movies on Vimeo
The role is best suited to someone who is experienced in premises verification and who is organised and flexible as well as able to take the initiative to get tasks done. However, all qualified candidates will be considered.
The successful candidate will:
- Be a New Zealand registered Veterinarian (or be able to obtain registration with VCNZ);
- Hold a full and clean New Zealand driver's licence (or be able to obtain a licence by converting a current overseas driver's licence)
- Have verbal and written skills, and analytical reasoning skills;
- Demonstrate integrity and trust, ethics and values, resilience, adaptability, and openness;
- Have experience persuading and influencing, teamwork, planning and organising;
- Have computer literacy – can operate standard and customised software to an acceptable standard e.g. word-processing, excel, internet, email.
The Ministry for Primary Industries (MPI) partners with New Zealand's food and fibre sector to be the world's most sustainable provider of high-value food and primary products.
To find out more about the Ministry and what we do please click here.
- Professional membership and annual practicing certificate reimbursement
- Wellness benefit for employees
- Reduced premiums for Group Healthcare Schemes
Please note, given this position is safety sensitive the preferred applicant/s for the position will be required to undergo a drug and alcohol pre-employment screening test. Further information on this process can be found on our careers site under the application process, on pre-employment checks page.
We are committed to being a good partner under Te Tiriti o Waitangi which includes working closely with iwi, hapū, whanau and hāpori.
We aspire to reflect the diverse communities we serve, so we welcome applications from individuals of all backgrounds and identities. As an organisation, we are committed to making Manatū Ahu Matua a great place to work for all.
In your cover letter we'd like to know about you, your values, your interest and motivations for this role; the abilities, strengths, personal attributes and diverse perspectives you will bring to the role and this organisation, which may have also been gained outside of the workforce.
Applications close at 11:59pm on Thursday 5th November 2026
If you have any questions about the role, please contact our Talent Advisory team by emailing George.Mitrakas@mpi.govt.nz
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