Production Manager

Position Summary

The Production Manager is the hands-on operating leader responsible for the safe, compliant, reliable, and cost-effective execution of production at the BRVN creamery. This role translates customer forecasts, approved formulations, product specifications, and production priorities into daily schedules, staffing plans, material requirements, and clear floor-level direction.

As BRVN transitions from primarily producing its own branded products to serving as a flexible co-manufacturing partner, the Production Manager will play a central role in building a disciplined, customer-ready operating system. The position oversees production, packaging, sanitation, documentation, team performance, equipment readiness, inventory coordination, and continuous improvement while remaining prepared to work directly in the process when needed.

The successful candidate will be comfortable operating in a small, growing facility where customer requirements, product mix, and production volumes may change frequently. This position requires strong judgment, attention to detail, ownership, and the ability to balance food safety, quality, delivery, cost, and team well-being.

Primary Outcomes

• A safe, sanitary, inspection-ready facility with strong adherence to food safety, quality, and workplace safety requirements.
• Production completed on schedule and in accordance with approved formulations, customer specifications, batch instructions, and packaging requirements.
• Accurate, complete, and timely production, traceability, sanitation, quality, labor, and inventory records.
• Controlled product yields, labor usage, downtime, changeover time, material loss, rework, and packaging giveaway.
• A trained, accountable, and cross-functional production team capable of supporting multiple products and customer programs.
• Successful transfer of new co-manufacturing projects from development and trial production into repeatable commercial production.

Essential Responsibilities

1. Production Planning and Execution

• Develop and maintain daily and weekly production schedules based on customer orders, forecasts, inventory requirements, equipment availability, sanitation needs, and staffing capacity.
• Sequence production to support efficient use of labor and equipment while controlling product changeovers, sanitation requirements, shelf-life exposure, and customer-specific constraints.
• Confirm that approved recipes, batch instructions, raw materials, packaging components, labels, production records, and release criteria are available before production begins.
• Direct and participate in start-up, processing, packaging, changeover, shutdown, cleaning, and sanitation activities.
• Assign work, balance labor, monitor progress, remove barriers, and adjust the plan when production conditions change.
• Coordinate finished-goods staging, cold storage, load-out readiness, and handoff to delivery or customer pickup.
• Provide hands-on relief and operating support when necessary to protect safety, quality, customer commitments, or business continuity.

2. Co-Manufacturing and Customer Requirements

• Maintain clear, controlled production instructions for each customer, product, package configuration, and manufacturing campaign.
• Participate in manufacturing feasibility reviews, plant trials, scale-up runs, pre-production readiness reviews, and commercial launches.
• Ensure customer-owned formulations, materials, packaging, and confidential information are handled in accordance with company agreements and internal controls.
• Coordinate with management, technical resources, quality personnel, and customer contacts to resolve specification questions, production risks, and launch issues.
• Identify and promptly communicate deviations, shortages, delays, quality concerns, capacity constraints, or other conditions that could affect a customer commitment.
• Support post-run reviews and convert lessons learned into improved standards, records, training, and future production plans.

3. Food Safety, Quality, and Regulatory Compliance

• Enforce applicable GMPs, sanitation procedures, food safety plans, preventive controls, allergen controls, traceability requirements, and customer quality standards.
• Ensure production complies with applicable dairy-processing requirements, permits, certifications, and inspection expectations, including PMO, organic, kosher, and third-party audit requirements when applicable.
• Verify completion and accuracy of batch records, pasteurization records, sanitation records, receiving records, lot tracking, quality checks, weight checks, coding, labeling, packaging, and product disposition records.
• Confirm that critical processing parameters and customer specifications are achieved, documented, reviewed, and escalated when out of tolerance.
• Maintain effective product hold, nonconformance, rework, corrective action, and deviation-management practices.
• Support environmental monitoring, foreign-material prevention, allergen management, pest control, chemical control, mock recalls, and other prerequisite programs.
• Maintain the authority and responsibility to stop production when an unsafe condition, food safety concern, quality risk, or serious specification deviation is identified.
• Keep the plant inspection-ready and participate in regulatory inspections, customer visits, certification audits, and corrective-action follow-up.

4. Team Leadership and Daily Management

• Lead production, packaging, sanitation, and related plant personnel; the number of direct reports may vary with business volume and staffing levels.
• Establish clear daily priorities through start-of-shift communication, production huddles, visual management, and documented work assignments.
• Train and cross-train employees on equipment, standard work, food safety, sanitation, quality checks, documentation, safety practices, and customer-specific requirements.
• Coach employees in real time, recognize good performance, address performance or conduct concerns promptly, and document issues appropriately.
• Review staffing needs, schedules, attendance, timekeeping, overtime requirements, and coverage plans.
• Promote a respectful, accountable, problem-solving culture that values safety, quality, teamwork, learning, and reliable execution.
• Monitor workload and staffing capacity so that production demands are met without relying on unsustainable work practices.

5. Cost Control and Continuous Improvement

• Track and improve key operating measures such as production attainment, yield, labor hours, line rate, downtime, changeover time, material loss, rework, scrap, packaging giveaway, and first-time-right documentation.
• Compare actual production performance to standards, estimates, and customer commitments; investigate significant variances and initiate corrective action.
• Use practical Lean and continuous-improvement methods to improve flow, workplace organization, standard work, equipment utilization, and problem resolution.
• Identify bottlenecks, recurring delays, quality losses, and capacity constraints; develop and implement countermeasures with management and the production team.
• Support accurate batch costing and customer pricing by providing reliable production, labor, yield, material-usage, and capacity data.
• Recommend capital improvements, tooling, process changes, automation, or facility modifications supported by operational and financial justification.

6. Equipment, Maintenance, and Facility Readiness

• Ensure production equipment is operated correctly, safely, and within established process limits.
• Coordinate operator care, cleaning, inspections, preventive maintenance, calibration, minor troubleshooting, and timely escalation of equipment problems.
• Create or communicate maintenance needs, prioritize work that affects safety or production, and coordinate with internal or external maintenance resources.
• Maintain readiness of pasteurization, cooling, refrigeration, processing, packaging, cleaning, water, compressed air, and related facility systems.
• Ensure tools, hoses, fittings, parts, chemicals, and production support equipment are organized, controlled, and available.
• Maintain high standards for housekeeping, 5S, sanitation, chemical storage, waste handling, and facility condition.

7. Materials, Inventory, and Production Readiness

• Coordinate with purchasing, receiving, quality, and management to ensure raw materials, ingredients, cultures, packaging, labels, and production supplies are available and approved.
• Maintain appropriate lot control, rotation, expiration-date control, segregation, storage, and reconciliation of company-owned and customer-owned materials.
• Monitor production consumption, unexpected losses, shortages, damaged materials, and inventory discrepancies.
• Support accurate raw-material, work-in-process, finished-goods, and customer-owned inventory records.
• Ensure materials are staged correctly before production and returned, reconciled, or dispositioned after each run.

8. Communication, Records, and Management Support

• Maintain timely, accurate, and organized production records, logs, schedules, reports, training records, and operating metrics.
• Provide management with clear updates on safety, quality, staffing, schedule attainment, equipment condition, material risks, customer issues, and improvement priorities.
• Participate in production planning, customer readiness, quality, maintenance, and business review meetings as required.
• Work collaboratively with management, administration, technical services, finance, sales, suppliers, customers, inspectors, auditors, and service contractors.
• Perform other duties reasonably related to safe and effective plant operations and the evolving needs of the business.

Required Qualifications

• High school diploma or equivalent.
• At least three years of experience in food, beverage, dairy, or other regulated manufacturing, or an equivalent combination of education and experience.
• At least two years of supervisory, team-lead, or people-management experience.
• Demonstrated ability to lead a production team while also working directly in plant operations when needed.
• Working knowledge of GMPs, sanitation, production documentation, lot traceability, quality checks, and safe equipment operation.
• Ability to organize work, set priorities, manage changing production demands, and communicate clear expectations.
• Strong attention to detail and the ability to complete and review manufacturing records accurately.
• Basic computer proficiency, including email, spreadsheets, shared documents, and digital production or inventory records.
• Ability to perform production calculations involving weights, volumes, percentages, yields, conversions, and basic cost or labor data.
• Professional communication skills and the ability to interact effectively with employees, management, customers, suppliers, inspectors, auditors, and contractors.

Preferred Qualifications

• Associate or bachelor's degree in dairy science, food science, operations management, engineering technology, business, or a related field.
• Dairy processing experience, including vat pasteurization, cultured products, fluid milk, cheese, butter, or related products.
• Experience in contract manufacturing, co-packing, private-label production, or a high-mix/low-volume manufacturing environment.
• HACCP, PCQI, pasteurizer operator, food safety, sanitation, or related certification.
• Experience supporting PMO, organic, kosher, SQF, BRCGS, or other regulatory and third-party certification programs.
• Experience with Lean manufacturing, visual management, standard work, 5S, root-cause analysis, or structured continuous improvement.
• Practical mechanical aptitude and experience coordinating maintenance or troubleshooting food-processing and packaging equipment.

Leadership Profile

• Safety-first: Protects employees, consumers, customers, and the facility without compromise.
• Accountable: Owns results, follows through, and addresses problems directly.
• Customer-ready: Understands that each production run represents a promise to a customer and their brand.
• Structured and adaptable: Uses standards and planning while responding effectively to changing conditions.
• Hands-on: Willingly works alongside the team and understands the process at floor level.
• Data-minded: Uses facts, records, and operating measures to identify problems and improve performance.
• Team builder: Develops capability, communicates clearly, and creates an environment where people can succeed.

Schedule, Work Environment, and Physical Requirements

• This is a full-time, on-site position at the BRVN creamery in Lyons Falls, New York.
• The normal schedule is primarily weekday/day shift; however, early starts, extended hours, occasional evenings or weekends, and emergency response may be required based on production schedules, customer needs, sanitation, equipment issues, or seasonal demand.
• The work environment includes refrigerated, wet, humid, warm, and noisy production areas; moving machinery; food ingredients; cleaning and sanitation chemicals; and frequent transitions between plant, cooler, warehouse, and office environments.
• Employees must follow all food safety, hygiene, illness-reporting, safety, clothing, and personal protective equipment requirements.
• The position regularly requires standing and walking; frequent bending, reaching, pushing, pulling, grasping, and climbing stairs; and working around processing and packaging equipment.
• The employee must be able to lift and carry up to 50 pounds. Heavier items must be handled using mechanical assistance or an appropriate team lift.
• Reasonable accommodations may be made to enable qualified individuals with disabilities to perform the essential functions of the position.
• Local travel is expected to be rare and will generally occur during the normal business day.

Compensation and Benefits

The anticipated salary range for this position is $45,000 to $65,000 per year, based on relevant experience, technical capability, leadership experience, and overall fit for the role. Benefits include paid time off, parental leave, an employee discount, and other benefits provided under current company policy.

About Black River Valley Natural

Black River Valley Natural, LLC is an artisanal dairy and specialty-food manufacturing facility located in Lyons Falls, New York. BRVN was founded to strengthen the connection between local farms, premium food products, and the communities of the Black River Valley.

The company is entering its next phase as a flexible co-manufacturing partner for emerging and established food brands. Our operating model combines small-batch flexibility with disciplined commercial manufacturing, helping customers move from product development and trial production into reliable repeat production. We are building a business known for food safety, quality, transparency, traceability, responsive service, and dependable execution while creating sustainable manufacturing opportunities in our local community.

Equal Employment Opportunity

Black River Valley Natural, LLC is an equal opportunity employer. Qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, national origin, age, disability, genetic information, protected veteran status, or any other characteristic protected by applicable law. This policy applies to all terms and conditions of employment, including recruitment, hiring, placement, promotion, compensation, training, discipline, termination, layoff, recall, transfer, and leaves of absence.

Pay: $45,000.00 - $65,000.00 per year

Benefits:

• Employee discount
• On-the-job training
• Paid time off

Work Location: In person

Salary : $45,000 - $65,000