Swellendam, Cape Region
Cape Town
| Posted: | 31 July 2026 |
| Closing date: | 7 August 2026 |
| Position: | Plant Manager (Hard Cheese Manufacturing) – Swellendam |
| Industry: | FMCG Foods (Dairy – Cheese) |
| Location: | Swellendam – Overberg Region, Western Cape |
| Remuneration: | Market Related |
| Description: | At LANCEWOOD®, dairy excellence is more than a promise – it’s a legacy – dedicated to creating high-quality, award-winning products using fresh milk sourced from trusted local farmers. LANCEWOOD® is a South African dairy company, founded in 1996 and acquired by JSE listed Libstar Holdings in 2008. LANCEWOOD® is known for its award-winning range of cheeses, yoghurts, sauces, and other dairy products. Lancewood is seeking an experienced Plant Manager for its Swellendam facility. The site is a specialised, high-volume hard cheese operation producing Cheddar and Mature Cheddar, and requires a leader who can balance technical manufacturing depth with disciplined day-to-day plant performance. Reporting to the Chief Operating Officer, the successful candidate will provide overall leadership of the site, ensuring the safe, efficient and profitable manufacture of product while maintaining world-class standards across quality, food safety, engineering, people performance and continuous improvement. The role requires a technically strong manufacturing leader with a proven track record in high-volume dairy production and a sound understanding of hard cheese manufacturing (using stirred curd method). Candidates should bring sound commercial acumen, a hands-on leadership style, and the ability to drive operational excellence through disciplined production management, plant reliability, asset utilisation, cost control, yield optimisation and team development. A relevant tertiary qualification in Operations Management, Production Management, Engineering, Food Technology or a related discipline is required, together with several years’ experience within dairy manufacturing and meaningful exposure to hard cheese production. Experience managing multidisciplinary teams and working closely with engineering, quality, maintenance and technical functions within a fast-paced food manufacturing environment will be highly advantageous. The position is based in Swellendam, one of the Western Cape’s most attractive country towns, offering an exceptional lifestyle and strong sense of community. Many professional families successfully utilise local schools, boarding schools, or schooling options in larger centres across the Western Cape. This opportunity is likely to appeal to candidates currently occupying Plant Manager, Operations Manager, Manufacturing Manager, Senior Production Manager or similar senior management roles within dairy and related food manufacturing environments, particularly where they have had meaningful exposure to technically complex, high-volume production sites. Nicolene Di Bartolo will manage all applications. To apply, please use the following link – SUBMIT YOUR CV – only applications via this link will be considered. Closing date: Friday, 7th August 2026. ONLY SHORTLISTED CANDIDATES WILL BE ENGAGED. |