QA Technical Assistant

About the role

Irish Country Meats is looking for a proactive Quality Assurance/Technical Assistant to join its Navan site. Reporting to the Quality Manager, you will work closely with supervisors, area managers, maintenance and operations to ensure product safety and quality across the manufacturing process.

Key responsibilities

• Monitor product, processes, food safety and quality throughout manufacturing.
• Inspect incoming product for weight, temperature and specification compliance.
• Communicate quality issues with suppliers and site management.
• Ensure adherence to Food Safety and Hygiene SOPs by all employees.
• Report quality standards to site management and support continuous improvement.
• Control non‑conforming product, including hold, rejection percentage agreement and release.
• Perform pre‑operation cleaning verification and inspections.
• Collect product samples for development, lab testing and customer requests.
• Manage customer queries or complaints and drive root‑cause analysis.
• Maintain accurate records, logs and documentation.

Required profile

• Third‑level degree in Food Science, Agricultural Science or related field.
• Hands‑on approach with ability to meet tight deadlines.
• Strong communication skills to liaise with internal teams and external customers.
• Commitment to continuous improvement and zero audit non‑conformances.

Required skills

• HACCP knowledge (certification advantageous).
• Good Manufacturing Practices (GMP) awareness.
• Root cause analysis for non‑conformances.
• Food safety standards implementation.
• Traceability compliance throughout production.