Purchasing and Stock Controller

Manage the procurement, intake and inventory of meat and other designated production materials to ensure uninterrupted production at the required quality and cost.

The successful candidate will maintain appropriate stock levels, coordinate supplier deliveries with production requirements, oversee accurate receiving and stock records, and minimise shortages, excess stock, spoilage and financial losses.

This is a hands-on management role requiring regular involvement on the receiving floor, in cold stores and with production teams.

Key responsibilities

1. Procurement and supplier management

• Source meat, raw materials, packaging and other allocated production requirements from approved suppliers.

• Negotiate prices, delivery schedules, payment terms and product specifications within delegated authority.

• Maintain reliable supplier relationships and develop alternative sources for critical materials.

• Evaluate suppliers on quality, delivery reliability, price, responsiveness and claims resolution.

• Monitor meat prices, supply availability and seasonal changes, and adjust purchasing plans accordingly.

• Assess value using usable yield, specification compliance, shelf life and transport costs, as well as purchase price.

• Ensure purchase orders are accurate, appropriately authorised and issued in time.

• Resolve shortages, incorrect deliveries, pricing discrepancies and supplier claims.

2. Stock planning and availability

• Translate production schedules and demand forecasts into practical purchasing and replenishment plans.

• Set and review minimum stock levels, maximum stock levels, reorder points and safety stock.

• Maintain appropriate stock cover by product, taking account of lead times, shelf life, storage capacity and demand variability.

• Review stock on hand, open purchase orders, planned receipts and production requirements daily.

• Identify shortages early and coordinate corrective action with suppliers and production.

• Prevent overstocking and reduce slow-moving, ageing and obsolete inventory.

• Coordinate raw-material availability with production sequencing and approved thawing plans where applicable.

• Monitor finished-goods stock with Production and Sales where it affects raw-material purchasing decisions.

3. Intake and receiving

• Manage delivery bookings and receiving capacity to support production and avoid congestion or unnecessary cold-chain exposure.

• Ensure incoming deliveries are checked against purchase orders, delivery notes and approved specifications.

• Verify quantities, net weights, tare weights, product identity, batch details, dates, packaging condition and required documentation.

• Ensure receiving temperature checks are completed against approved product specifications.

• Oversee accurate and timely goods-received entries in the stock system.

• Identify and investigate short deliveries, weight variances, damaged packaging and specification discrepancies.

• Ensure non-conforming stock is identified, segregated and placed on hold pending the authorised Quality decision.

• Coordinate supplier returns, replacement stock and credit notes.

• Maintain complete receiving records and support proper use and verification of weighing equipment.

4. Inventory accuracy and stock control

• Maintain accurate stock records by product, batch, location and stock status.

• Control stock movements between receiving, cold storage, production and other designated locations.

• Apply first-expiry-first-out stock rotation, using first-in-first-out where appropriate.

• Oversee cycle counts and scheduled stocktakes, with Finance involvement where required.

• Investigate differences between physical stock and system records and implement corrective action.

• Monitor shrinkage, unexplained losses, expiry, damage and write-offs.

• Ensure stock adjustments are supported, authorised and recorded.

• Reconcile material issued to production, returns and recorded consumption with the Production team.

• Maintain clear identification and control of quarantined, rejected and released stock.

5. Food safety, quality and traceability

• Work closely with Quality Assurance to ensure suppliers and incoming materials meet approved food-safety and quality requirements.

• Ensure receiving and storage practices follow the plant’s hygiene, cold-chain and food-safety procedures.

• Maintain traceability from supplier delivery through storage and issue to production.

• Support supplier assessments, internal audits, customer audits and traceability or recall exercises.

• Ensure receiving and stock-control staff are trained in relevant procedures.

• Escalate suspected contamination, temperature deviations, traceability failures and other food-safety concerns immediately.

• Maintain Quality Assurance’s authority over product release and food-safety disposition.

6. Cost control, systems and reporting

• Manage purchasing within approved budgets and delegated approval limits.

• Report on purchase-price movements, supplier performance, stockholding and working-capital requirements.

• Track waste, stock losses, emergency purchases and avoidable transport costs.

• Support Finance with purchase-order, goods-received and invoice reconciliations.

• Maintain accurate supplier, product, unit-of-measure and lead-time information in the relevant systems.

• Prepare a weekly operational report covering shortages, upcoming receipts, ageing stock and priority supplier issues.

• Prepare monthly performance reports with corrective actions and improvement opportunities.

• Maintain ethical purchasing practices and declare supplier conflicts of interest.

7. Team management and operational coordination

• Allocate responsibilities and supervise procurement, receiving and stock-control staff.

• Plan receiving coverage around delivery schedules and production requirements.

• Train staff, monitor performance and address recurring errors or procedural failures.

• Coordinate daily with Production, Quality Assurance, Finance, Sales and warehouse/cold-store teams.

• Ensure safe working practices and compliance with site hygiene and protective-clothing requirements.

• Improve purchasing, intake and stock-control processes as the plant’s needs develop.

Minimum requirements

• Grade 12 / Matric.

• At least three years’ relevant experience across procurement, inventory management or supply-chain operations in food manufacturing.

• At least three years’ direct experience in meat processing, deboning, an abattoir or a comparable meat-production environment.

• At least two years’ supervisory or management experience.

• Proven responsibility for stock planning, supplier purchasing and goods receiving.

• Practical understanding of chilled and frozen meat handling, shelf-life control, batch traceability and stock rotation.

• Experience conducting stocktakes and investigating inventory discrepancies.

• Strong Excel skills and practical experience using an ERP or inventory-management system.

• Demonstrated negotiation, numerical and problem-solving ability.

Preferred qualifications and experience

• Diploma or degree in Supply Chain Management, Procurement, Logistics, Operations Management or a related discipline.

• Candidates with substantial directly relevant meat-industry experience may also be considered without a tertiary qualification.

• Training in HACCP, food safety, inventory management or procurement.

• Experience in the plant’s relevant meat categories, cuts, grading and processing specifications.

• Experience assessing meat yields and their effect on purchasing value.

• Experience with supplier audits and a formal food-safety management system.

• Experience managing packaging and ingredients alongside meat procurement.

Key competencies

• Accurate planning and close attention to detail.

• Commercial judgement and cost awareness.

• Strong ownership of stock availability and inventory accuracy.

• Practical leadership and clear communication.

• Ability to make timely decisions under production pressure.

• Firm, professional supplier management.

• Integrity and disciplined adherence to approval procedures.

• Ability to balance production continuity, shelf life, quality and cash tied up in stock.

Pay: From R20 000,00 per month

Work Location: In person