Quality Assurance Manager

At Barry Callebaut, we are on a journey to transform the cocoa and chocolate industry. As the world’s leading manufacturer of high-quality chocolate and cocoa products, our actions truly shape the future of our industry. We are a business‑to‑business company, serving the entire food sector, from the cocoa bean to the finest chocolate product. We are a company with a purpose, we believe in doing well by doing good and reinvesting in the communities we operate. We have a long‑standing commitment to sustainability and our goal is to shape a sustainable cocoa and chocolate future. We are headquartered in Zurich, and have more than 12,000 passionate employees working in more than 40 countries worldwide. We are very proud of who we are and what we do. And of course, we are always looking for talented people to help us have a positive impact on our industry and beyond!

The Quality Assurance Manager is responsible for planning, implementing and managing the Quality Assurance program to ensure full compliance with the Barry Callebaut Quality Management System (QMS), Global Food Safety Initiative (GFSI) standards and all customer and local regulatory requirements. The role cultivates a "Safety, Food Safety First and Quality Always" mindset aligned with GoForZero and continuously drives performance improvements through lean principles and people capability development.

Responsibilities

Ensure compliance of Quality, Food Safety and Sanitation policies with QMS, GFSI, customer and regulatory requirements.

Lead site food safety programs, including food safety plans, food defense and vulnerability assessments.

Manage internal, customer, certification and regulatory audits; ensure effective corrective and preventive actions (CAPA).

Oversee customer complaint resolution and root cause analysis (RCA) to drive continuous improvement.

Supervise laboratory operations, QC processes and approve product batch releases.

Maintain sanitation standards, document management systems and accurate product labeling.

Develop and lead the QA team, manage issue resolution processes and plan QA budgets and CAPEX related to food safety.

Monitor plant quality performance using KPIs and balanced scorecards.

Collaborate with Operations, R&D and Sales on new product introductions and product transfers.

Responsibilities related to Customer Quality & Quality in Design

Analyze customer feedback and quality metrics to identify trends and improvement opportunities.

Ensure customer quality requirements are clearly communicated and implemented at plant level.

Integrate quality standards into product and process design, including NPI and product transfers.

Participate in risk assessments and resolve design‑related quality issues through cross‑functional collaboration.

Support customer audits and lead factory‑level quality improvement initiatives.

Act as the key link between the factory and regional customer quality teams.

Your profile

Bachelor’s degree in Chemistry, Biology, Microbiology, Food Science or Engineering.

7+ years of experience in food quality assurance; minimum 5 years in food safety.

HACCP certification and knowledge of food safety standards (e.g., FSSC 22000, BRC).

Experience with laboratory operations, manufacturing processes and quality systems.

Practical knowledge of Lean Manufacturing, TPM and project management tools.

Strong leadership, communication and change management skills.

Fluent in Dutch and good knowledge of English.

At Barry Callebaut, we are committed to Diversity & Inclusion. United by our strong values, we thrive on the diversity of who we are, where we come from, what we’ve experienced and how we think. We are committed to nurturing an inclusive environment where people can truly be themselves, grow to their full potential and feel they belong.#oneBC - Diverse People, Sustainable Growth.

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