Belvika Trade & Packaging Ltd. DBA BelPak is a leading one-stop contract packaging company, specializing in precision packing of dry foods, chocolate and confectionary products from multiple facilities totaling more than 500,000 ft2. BelPak has grown to be one of the largest co-packers of chocolate, confectionary and snack products in Canada. BelPak uses its extensive experience in managing both manual processes and automated equipment to handle primary and secondary packaging of products for some of the world’s best-known confectionary brands.
BelPak is an equal opportunity employer, offering competitive wages, a bonus plan, benefit plan, ongoing training and an interesting and challenging work environment. We will provide the tools and training that you require to excel at your role together with access to Senior Management to provide additional support and guidance. We welcome and encourage applications from people with disabilities. Accommodation is available on request for candidates taking part in all aspects of the selection process.
Please visit our web site www.BelPak.com for additional information and to determine if we are the right fit for your career
BelPak is seeking an experienced, proactive, and results-driven Quality Assurance Manager to lead the Quality Assurance and Food Safety programs at our Thornmount facility. The Thornmount location is a Canadian Food Inspection Agency (CFIA) registered establishment, operating in a dynamic food manufacturing and co-packing environment, servicing multiple customers and handling a diverse range of food products, including products containing meat ingredients and regulated allergens.
Position Summary
The successful candidate will be responsible for ensuring compliance with applicable Canadian food safety regulations, maintaining SQF certification, managing customer and regulatory audits, and promoting a strong culture of food safety, quality, accountability, and continuous improvement across all departments.
This is a hands-on leadership role requiring strong technical knowledge, regulatory experience, effective communication skills, and the ability to work closely with Production, Warehouse, Blending, Maintenance, and senior management teams on-site on a daily basis.
Key Responsibilities
1. Regulatory Compliance & CFIA Coordination
- Ensure ongoing compliance with applicable Canadian food safety legislation, including the Safe Food for Canadians Act (SFCA), Safe Food for Canadians Regulations (SFCR), and applicable requirements under the Food and Drugs Act and Food and Drug Regulations.
- Act as the primary facility contact for CFIA inspectors and other regulatory authorities, coordinating inspections, documentation requests, follow-up activities, and regulatory communications.
- Maintain regulatory readiness for a CFIA-registered establishment, including applicable controls and documentation associated with meat-containing products.
- Oversee compliance with applicable licensing, preventive control, traceability, product identification, labelling, and recordkeeping requirements.
- Coordinate responses to regulatory observations, non-compliances, and corrective action requests, ensuring timely and effective resolution.
- Monitor regulatory updates and assess their impact on facility operations, procedures, and food safety programs.
2. Food Safety & Quality Management Systems
- Lead the implementation, maintenance, verification, and continuous improvement of the facility's Quality Management System (QMS) and Food Safety Management System.
- Maintain compliance with SQF, HACCP, Good Manufacturing Practices (GMP), and applicable customer-specific food safety and quality requirements.
- Act as the designated SQF Practitioner or backup, as assigned, ensuring the effective implementation and maintenance of the SQF System.
- Oversee the development, review, validation, and verification of HACCP plans, preventive control programs, prerequisite programs, SOPs, and supporting documentation.
- Ensure effective implementation of allergen management, sanitation, environmental monitoring, pest control, foreign material prevention, food defence, and food fraud prevention programs.
- Maintain effective document control, quality records, and program review processes.
3. Audit Management & Customer Compliance
- Support the QA Audit Lead Sr. Manager in coordinating regulatory, SQF certification, customer, third-party, and internal audits, taking responsibility for ensuring facility readiness, providing on-site support during audit execution, and coordinating the implementation and follow-up of corrective actions to address identified findings.
- Maintain the facility in a continuous state of audit readiness through regular inspections, GMP assessments, and proactive identification of food safety and quality risks.
- Act as a key representative of the facility during customer audits and technical assessments.
- Manage audit findings, develop corrective and preventive action plans (CAPA), and verify their effectiveness.
- Ensure compliance with customer-specific quality standards, specifications, and contractual food safety requirements.
- Collaborate with customers and internal stakeholders to address technical inquiries, quality concerns, and continuous improvement opportunities.
4. Operational Quality Assurance & Food Safety Controls
- Oversee daily QA activities across production, packaging, blending, warehousing, and sanitation operations.
- Ensure effective execution and documentation of quality control checks, including product specifications, packaging integrity, coding and labelling verification, weight controls, and finished product inspections.
- Oversee sanitation verification activities, including ATP testing, allergen swabbing, and cleaning validation programs.
- Ensure effective monitoring and verification of foreign material detection and prevention systems, including X-ray equipment, metal detection where applicable, magnets, and screening controls.
- Manage and oversee product holds, non-conforming materials, investigations, product disposition, and release processes.
- Oversee product traceability, mock recall, export documents and procedures, ensuring regulatory and customer requirements are met.
- Work closely with Operations and Maintenance to address equipment-related quality risks, sanitation deficiencies, and potential contamination hazards.
- Ensure food safety and quality requirements are consistently applied across all production shifts.
5. Non-Conformance Management & Continuous Improvement
- Lead investigations into customer complaints, internal non-conformances, process deviations, and food safety incidents.
- Conduct root cause analyses and implement effective corrective and preventive actions.
- Monitor recurring quality issues and identify opportunities to strengthen preventive controls and operational practices.
- Establish and monitor quality performance indicators, including audit results, customer complaints, CAPA effectiveness, GMP compliance, and operational quality trends.
- Promote a proactive approach to risk management, process improvement, and prevention of quality failures.
6. QA Team Leadership & Development
- Lead, supervise, coach, and develop the facility's QA Coordinators, QA Inspectors, and other Quality personnel.
- Ensure appropriate QA coverage, communication, and consistency of quality controls across all operating shifts.
- Establish clear expectations, responsibilities, and accountability within the QA team.
- Coordinate initial and refresher training on GMP, HACCP, SQF, allergen management, sanitation controls, and other applicable food safety programs.
- Evaluate team performance, identify training needs, and promote professional development.
- Foster a strong food safety culture through active engagement with Production, Warehouse, Blending, Maintenance, and other departments.
- Provide regular feedback and performance evaluations to Senior QA Management regarding the facility’s overall quality and food safety performance, including key performance indicators (KPIs), compliance status, audit readiness, identified risks, recurring issues, corrective actions, and opportunities for continuous improvement.
Qualifications & Experience
Required Qualifications
- Bachelor's degree in Food Science, Food Technology, Microbiology, or a related scientific discipline.
- Minimum 5 years of experience in Quality Assurance or Food Safety within the food manufacturing, processing, or packaging industry.
- Previous experience in a QA supervisory or management role, with demonstrated ability to lead and develop a team.
- Strong knowledge of Canadian food safety legislation, including SFCA, SFCR, and applicable CFIA regulatory requirements.
- Demonstrated experience working directly with CFIA inspectors or other food regulatory authorities, including regulatory inspections, compliance assessments, and corrective action follow-up.
- HACCP training or certification and demonstrated experience implementing and maintaining HACCP-based food safety systems.
- Strong working knowledge of SQF certification requirements, GMP, prerequisite programs, and food safety management systems.
- Proven experience leading or coordinating customer, third-party certification, and regulatory audits.
- Experience managing non-conformances, customer complaints, root cause investigations, and CAPA programs.
- Strong technical writing, documentation management, communication, and organizational skills.
- Ability to work effectively in a fast-paced, multi-product manufacturing environment while managing competing priorities.
- PCQI certified
Preferred Qualifications
- Previous experience working in a CFIA-registered establishment, particularly one handling meat-containing products.
- Experience with regulatory requirements applicable to meat products, including CFIA inspection activities and preventive controls.
- SQF Practitioner experience and formal SQF training.
- Experience in contract manufacturing, co-packing, or multi-customer food packaging operations.
- Practical knowledge of allergen control, sanitation validation and verification, ATP testing, foreign material detection systems, and traceability programs.
- Familiarity with electronic quality management systems, ERP platforms, and production documentation systems.
Key Competencies
- Strong leadership, sound decision-making, effective coaching abilities, and proven skills in team development and performance management.
- Ability to confidently interact with regulatory inspectors, customers, auditors, and senior management.
- Excellent analytical thinking, problem-solving, and root cause investigation capabilities.
- Strong attention to detail and commitment to regulatory compliance.
- Ability to prioritize multiple responsibilities and manage demanding audit schedules.
- Effective communication, conflict resolution, and cross-functional collaboration skills.
- Proactive, organized, and hands-on approach to food safety and operational quality management.
- Ability to make timely, risk-based decisions to protect product safety, regulatory compliance, and customer requirements.
Our Expectations
The successful candidate will be a visible, proactive, and engaged leader within the facility’s team, fostering strong cross-functional collaboration, accountability, and a culture of continuous improvement in food safety and quality performance, capable of balancing regulatory and certification requirements with the practical demands of a high-volume food packaging operation.
We are looking for someone who can take ownership of the facility's Quality and Food Safety programs, maintain strong working relationships with CFIA and our customers, support operational excellence, and continuously strengthen the food safety culture across the organization.
This job posting is for an existing vacancy. We thank all candidates for their interest; however, only those most qualified will be contacted.
Interested candidates should submit a cover letter and resume to BelPakHR@belpak.com quoting “Quality Assurance Manager - Scarborough” in the subject line.
