TEAM LEADER – CHEESE PRODUCTION

Woodlands Dairy (Pty) (Ltd); Oos-Kaap; On-site; ZAR 180,000 - 260,000; Full time

Job summary

Woodlands Dairy (Pty) (Ltd) seeks an experienced Production Supervisor to lead a team of up to 24 employees in cheese manufacturing. You will oversee vats, towers, and related equipment, ensuring pH, salt, and weight controls meet recipe specifications and product quality standards.

Responsibilities include enforcing HACCP, GMP, and ISO requirements, driving efficiency, and maintaining safety and hygiene. This role requires strong leadership, training, and problem-solving skills in a fast-paced

Qualifications

• Grade 12 / Matric and SP2 with Nature of Milk.
• HACCP and Safety Training Certificate.
• Minimum of 1 year’s experience in a cheese manufacturing environment.
• Previous supervisory experience overseeing teams in a production environment.
• Ability to supervise and coordinate up to 24 employees.
• Sound knowledge of cheese manufacturing processes, draining vats, cheese towers and cheese production operations.
• Strong understanding of GMP, HACCP, ISO, Food Safety, Quality and Hygiene requirements.
• Working knowledge of production equipment and machinery used within a cheese factory.
• Ability to monitor production performance, yields, waste and product quality standards.
• Strong problem-solving, troubleshooting and decision-making skills.
• Good planning, leadership and people management skills.
• Ability to conduct employee training, coaching and performance monitoring.
• Good communication skills with the ability to engage across all levels of the business.
• Strong attention to detail and commitment to product quality and food safety.

Responsibilities

• Lead, supervise, and coordinate up to 24 employees to ensure adherence to company policies, procedures, productivity targets, and workplace discipline.
• Oversee the operation of draining vats, cheese towers, and associated equipment to ensure efficient production.
• Monitor cheese production processes, including pH levels, salt addition, vacuum pressure, weight control, and recipe compliance.
• Ensure all cheese products are produced, handled, packed, and transferred according to quality, weight, traceability, and food safety requirements.
• Maintain compliance with HACCP, ISO, GMP, hygiene, sanitation, and quality standards throughout the production process.
• Drive production efficiency by monitoring yields, controlling waste, reducing losses, and achieving production targets.
• Promote a safe working environment through compliance with safety procedures and PPE.
• Monitor raw materials, packaging materials, and production resources to ensure product availability and minimize waste.
• Complete and sign off production, quality, hygiene, traceability, and ISO documentation accurately and on time.
• Conduct inspections of equipment, production areas, and sanitation activities to ensure readiness and compliance.
• Coordinate with Cheesemaker, Laboratory, Warehouse, Planning, and Cold Storage departments to maintain product quality and flow.
• Train, coach, and develop employees to ensure competency and SOP compliance.

Skills

Team leadership

Production supervision

Cheese production

HACCP knowledge

GMP/ISO

Quality control

Safety awareness

Problem solving

Planning & people management

Education

Grade 12 / Matric and SP2 with Nature of Milk

Tools

Cheese production machinery

Job description

Key Performance Areas:

• Lead, supervise, and coordinate up to 24 employees to ensure adherence to company policies, procedures, productivity targets, and workplace discipline.
• Oversee the operation of draining vats, cheese towers, and associated equipment to ensure efficient and uninterrupted cheese production.
• Monitor cheese production processes, including pH levels, salt addition, vacuum pressure, weight control, and recipe compliance to achieve product specifications.
• Ensure all cheese products are produced, handled, packed, and transferred according to quality, weight, traceability, and food safety requirements.
• Maintain compliance with HACCP, ISO, GMP, hygiene, sanitation, and quality standards throughout the production process.
• Drive production efficiency bymonitoringyields, controlling waste, reducing losses, and ensuring production targets are achieved.
• Promote a safe working environment through compliance with safety procedures, PPE requirements, incident reporting, and safety awareness initiatives.
• Monitor raw materials, packaging materials, and production resources to ensure product availability and minimize waste.
• Complete and sign off production, quality, hygiene, traceability, and ISO documentation accurately and on time.
• Conduct inspections of equipment, production areas, and sanitation activities to ensure operational readiness and compliance.
• Coordinate with the Cheesemaker, Laboratory, Warehouse, Planning, and Cold Storage departments tomaintainproduct quality and production flow.
• Train, coach, and develop employees to ensure competency, compliance with SOPs, and continuous skills development.

Knowledge and Skills:

• Grade 12 / MatricandSP2 qualification with Nature of Milk.
• HACCP andSafety Training Certificate.
• Minimum of 1years'experiencein a cheese manufacturing environment.
• Previoussupervisory experience overseeing teams in a production environment.
• Ability to supervise and coordinate up to 24 employees.
• Sound knowledge of cheese manufacturing processes, draining vats, cheese towers, and cheese production operations.
• Strong understanding of GMP, HACCP, ISO, Food Safety, Quality, and Hygiene requirements.
• Working knowledge of production equipment and machinery used within a cheese factory.
• Ability tomonitorproduction performance, yields, waste, and product quality standards.
• Strong problem-solving, troubleshooting, and decision-making skills.
• Good planning, leadership, and people management skills.
• Ability to conduct employee training, coaching, and performance monitoring.
• Good communicationskills with the ability to engage effectively across all levels of the business.
• Strong attention to detail and commitment to product quality and food safety.
• Ability to work under pressure in a fast-paced production environment.
• Computer literacy andaccuraterecord-keeping skills will beadvantageous.
• First Aid, Supervisory, Dairyman, and Chain Hoist Training will beadvantageous.