Quality Assurance Manager

Job Summary

The Quality Assurance Manager is responsible for managing CQ’s food safety and quality assurance systems and overseeing the daily operations of the QA/QC Department. The role ensures that all products, manufacturing activities and facilities comply with applicable food safety legislation, licensing requirements, company standards and certification requirements, including FSSC 22000 and ISO 22000.

The successful candidate will also participate in new product development, factory licensing applications, supplier and product compliance reviews, internal audits and continuous improvement initiatives.

Key Responsibilities

Food Safety Management Systems

• Maintain, implement and continuously improve the company’s FSSC 22000, ISO 22000, HACCP, GMP and related food safety management systems.
• Ensure that policies, procedures, SOPs, work instructions and records are properly established, implemented and maintained.
• Coordinate internal audits, management reviews, risk assessments and corrective and preventive actions.
• Prepare for and coordinate external certification, customer and regulatory audits.
• Follow up on audit findings and ensure corrective actions are completed within the required timeframe.
• Monitor changes in relevant food safety regulations, standards and certification requirements.

QA/QC Department Management

• Lead and oversee the daily operations of the QA/QC Department.
• Supervise, train and develop QA/QC team members.
• Establish inspection, testing, sampling and monitoring programmes for raw materials, work-in-progress products, finished products and the production environment.
• Review QA/QC/PD records, inspection results and laboratory testing reports.
• Ensure that non-conforming materials and products are properly identified, segregated, investigated and handled.
• Monitor hygiene, sanitation, pest control, allergen control, foreign-object control and environmental conditions within the factory.
• Conduct regular factory inspections and verify compliance with GMP and internal standards.

Regulatory Compliance and Factory Licensing

• Handle food factory licence applications, renewals, amendments and related regulatory submissions.
• Liaise with relevant government departments, certification bodies, laboratories, consultants and external service providers.
• Ensure that the factory, production processes and documentation comply with applicable Hong Kong food safety and licensing requirements.

New Product Development

• Participate in new product development projects from the food safety, quality and regulatory perspectives.
• Review product formulations, raw material specifications, allergen information, production processes, shelf-life requirements and packaging specifications.
• Conduct or coordinate product risk assessments, trial production reviews, shelf-life studies and product testing.
• Review product labels and claims to ensure compliance with applicable regulatory requirements.
• Approve new raw materials, suppliers, packaging materials and finished-product specifications before commercial production.

Requirements

• Bachelor’s degree in Food Science, Food Technology, Food Safety, Microbiology, Chemistry or a related discipline.
• At least 3 years of relevant experience in the food manufacturing or food processing industry.
• Practical experience in implementing or maintaining FSSC 22000, ISO 22000, HACCP or other recognised food safety management systems.
• Experience in managing factory audits, certification audits and regulatory inspections.
• Knowledge of Hong Kong food safety legislation, food labelling requirements and food factory licensing procedures.
• Good leadership, communication, problem-solving and analytical skills.
• Strong attention to detail with good documentation and record-management skills.
• Able to work independently and coordinate effectively with Production, R&D, Purchasing, Warehouse, Retail, Marketing and other departments.
• Good command of written and spoken Cantonese and English, proficiency in Putonghua.