Jaggery Supervisor Job Tana River Sugar Bura, Kenya

Job description

Role Summary

The Jaggery Supervisor is responsible for overseeing the day-to-day operations of the jaggery processing plant, ensuring efficient production, consistent product quality, optimal utilization of manpower and equipment, compliance with food safety standards, and adherence to occupational health, safety, and environmental requirements. The incumbent will supervise production personnel, coordinate daily manufacturing activities, monitor production performance, and support continuous process improvement to achieve production targets.

Key Responsibilities

• Production Operations Management: Supervise and coordinate daily jaggery production activities from sugarcane crushing, juice extraction, clarification, boiling, concentration, moulding, cooling, packaging, and storage to ensure production targets, product quality, and operational efficiency are consistently achieved.
• Production Planning & Performance Monitoring: Implement daily production plans, allocate manpower, monitor production schedules, and track key operational indicators including juice extraction efficiency, product yield, equipment utilization, fuel consumption, downtime, and production losses while initiating corrective actions to improve productivity.
• Equipment Operation & Maintenance Coordination: Monitor the safe operation of cane crushers, furnaces, boiling pans, moulding equipment, and ancillary machinery. Coordinate routine inspections, preventive maintenance, breakdown repairs, and equipment cleaning to minimize downtime and maintain operational reliability.
• Quality Assurance & Food Safety Compliance: Ensure all production activities comply with approved quality standards, Good Manufacturing Practices (GMP), Good Hygiene Practices (GHP), sanitation procedures, and food safety requirements. Work closely with the Quality Assurance Officer to address quality deviations and implement corrective actions.
• Health, Safety & Environmental (HSE) Compliance: Promote a safe working environment by enforcing occupational health and safety procedures, ensuring proper use of personal protective equipment (PPE), conducting toolbox talks, reporting incidents and near misses, and ensuring safe operation of processing equipment while supporting environmentally responsible waste management practices.
• Resource Utilization & Cost Control: Optimize the utilization of sugarcane, bagasse, water, labour, consumables, and processing materials to minimize waste, improve energy efficiency, reduce production costs, and maximize product recovery.
• Team Leadership & Staff Development: Supervise, train, mentor, and motivate production operators and processing staff on standard operating procedures, equipment operation, food safety, workplace hygiene, quality standards, and emergency response procedures to enhance individual performance and team productivity.

Qualification, skills and Competencies

• Education: Diploma or Certificate in Food Science and Technology, Sugar Technology, Food Processing, Chemical Engineering, Mechanical Engineering, Production Engineering, Industrial Engineering, or a closely related technical field. Specialized training in jaggery (non-centrifugal sugar) production, food safety, or manufacturing operations will be an added advantage.
• Experience: Minimum of three (3) years’ practical experience in jaggery production, sugar processing, food manufacturing, or a related agro-processing environment, including at least one (1) year in a supervisory role. Experience in open-pan boiling systems and sugarcane processing will be highly desirable.
• Technical Skills: Sound knowledge of jaggery manufacturing processes, sugarcane juice extraction, clarification, boiling and concentration techniques, furnace operation, bagasse fuel management, production planning, equipment operation, preventive maintenance coordination, quality control procedures, Good Manufacturing Practices (GMP), workplace safety requirements, production documentation, inventory control, and proficiency in Microsoft Office applications.
• Behavioural Competencies: Strong leadership and supervisory skills, excellent communication and interpersonal skills, planning and organizational ability, problem-solving and decision-making capability, attention to detail, teamwork, accountability, adaptability, conflict resolution skills, the ability to work under pressure, and a commitment to continuous improvement, food safety, operational excellence, and high ethical standards.
• Additional Requirements: Willingness to reside and work at TRSC Farm in Bura, Tana River County; ability to work shifts, weekends, public holidays, and extended hours during peak production periods; commitment to maintaining high standards of quality, occupational health and safety, environmental compliance, and efficient production operations.

How to Apply

Click here to apply