QA Officer role at NEI Ltd

QUALITY ASSURANCE OFFICER – JOB OPENING

BACKGROUND
Natural Extracts Industries Ltd (NEI), a start-up social enterprise, is pioneering the sustainable flavour production industry in Tanzania, starting with vanilla and other flavour extracts. The company works in all areas from cultivation, to post-harvest processing, to value-add manufacturing and to international sales and marketing. The supply chain currently integrates over 3,500 farmers from Kilimanjaro, Arusha, Morogoro and Kagera regions, and through this sourcing model NEI aims to deliver a long-term socioeconomic impact of ~$250 in incremental annual income per smallholder household, on average. Currently, products include natural flavours, such as: (i) liquid extracts from vanilla, orange and cacao; and (ii) solid flavours like gourmet-grade bourbon vanilla pods and cocoa solids. The company is embarking on a rapid expansion phase, with positions open for self-driven, hard-working, smart and committed candidates.

ROLE RESPONSIBILITIES
The Officer will report to the Quality Assurance Lead, and be responsible for the following activities:
• Controlling the company’s production operations to specified quality and safety standards (e.g., TFDA, TBS, OSHA, NEMC, ISO, BRC, HACCP, etc.) and ensuring all operations follow correct Food Safety Management Standards (FSMS) as defined in the Company’s Quality Management System (QMS), and as may be defined and agreed from time to time by the QA Lead and/or management team. This will involve:
o Ensuring the quality control of flavour ingredients and related materials, from accepting raw materials (e.g., vanilla pods, cacao beans, packing materials, ancillary stock), to processing and packaging end-products.
o Conducting quantitative and qualitative analysis of raw/interim/end material acceptability (e.g., moisture content)
 Monitoring interim product quality measures like Operating Pre-Requisite Procedures/OPRPs (e.g., measuring temperature, alcohol content, etc.);
 Analysing flavour compound content (e.g., using spectrography) and related measures (e.g., fat content, acidity, etc.);
 Analysing microbial activity (e.g., plate count);
o Carrying our quality audits of the production department, including:
 Ensuring and monitoring cleanliness/hygiene of the production environment, packing materials (e.g., sanitised bottles) and related matters;
 Implementing, supervising, and maintaining the Food Safety Management System, including the training and mentoring of staff on food quality & safety;
o Carrying out quality audits of suppliers and finished goods supply chain points with a view to ensuring compliance and refining Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs);
o Managing departmental activates to comply with international food standards (ISO 22000, Codex Alimentarius);
o Managing the microbiology laboratory and all internal testing and analyses procedures (including management of reagent stock levels and equipment calibration);
o Managing client claims regarding quality of the product;
o Partaking in external certifications and audits related to quality assurance;
• Continually improve the quality controls of the Company:
o Draft and review quality assurance policies and procedures, standard operating procedures, and forms;
o Interpret, implement and evaluate adequacy of quality standards;
o Determine, negotiate and agree in-house quality procedures, standards and specifications;
o Develop and prescribe standards, testing and evaluation criteria for all input, in-process and finished goods;
• Follow, without exception, all health & safety rules and quality control measures as per the Company’s QMS, including all Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs) and Good Manufacturing Practices (GMPs), and ensuring the production team does the same;
• Providing weekly, monthly and quarterly reports to management based on agreed performance indicators;
• Furthering the company mission: to become a leading African manufacturer of premium natural flavour products for the home baking, commercial kitchen and specialty foods markets, while providing sustainable, increased income for smallholder farmers;
• Adhering to and instituting the company values of Professionalism, Ambition and Teamwork;
• Any other duties as may be required from time to time by the QA Lead, other peers, the management team or the Directors.

DESIRED SKILLS
The Officer will have the following qualifications and competencies:
• A BSc in Food Process Engineering, Food Technology, Food Science, Chemistry, or Microbiology;
• Two or more years of QA experience within consumer products, specifically beverage, food or other clean manufacturing;
• Knowledge of Statistical Process Control, HACCP, ISO, and sanitation/hygiene management;
• Experience in setting standards: Quality / Design & adherence to SOPs quality & hygiene standards;
• Excellent statistical analysis skills as well as data presentation skills;
• Ability to communicate clearly and effectively with non-native English speakers;
• Ability to work in a multi-cultural environment and be sensitive to foreign culture.

EXPRESSIONS OF INTEREST
If you would like to be involved, please contact us at HR@nei-ltd.com, including your CV and a brief message about your passion as a Quality Assurance Officer.