Chamidu Basnayake

About you

I am a dedicated Quality Assurance professional with over six years of experience in high-risk food manufacturing environments within the UK. My career journey has taken me from a hands-on auditing role through to a leadership position, driven by a genuine passion for food safety, continuous improvement, and building strong quality cultures.

I hold dual Lead Auditor certifications in both BRCGS Food Safety and ISO 9001:2015, and I am committed to maintaining the highest standards of technical compliance in everything I do.

Outside of my professional work, I am enthusiastic about mentoring others entering the food safety field and contributing positively to the wider quality community.

Why did you join the BRCGS Professional Programme?

I joined the BRCGS Professional Programme because I wanted to formalise and validate the expertise I have developed throughout my career in a way that is recognised and respected across the food and consumer goods industries globally.

BRCGS represents the gold standard in food safety certification, and being part of the Professional Programme felt like a natural progression, a way to align my personal commitment to quality with a globally credible framework.

I also wanted to connect with a wider network of like-minded professionals who share the same values around safety, integrity, and continuous improvement.

What value do you personally feel the BRCGS Professional certification brings to you?

The BRCGS Professional certification brings me immense professional credibility and personal confidence. It demonstrates to employers, clients, and peers that my knowledge and skills have been independently assessed to a rigorous international standard.

For me, it is not simply a badge, it is a commitment to ongoing excellence.

The certification has opened doors to more senior technical responsibilities, strengthened my ability to lead audits with authority, and given me a structured framework through which I can continue to grow. It also reflects my investment in the profession and my determination to be taken seriously as a technical leader in food safety.

How has the training helped improve operations at your site/company?

The BRCGS training has had a tangible and measurable impact on site operations. By deepening my understanding of risk assessment, root cause analysis, and vulnerability assessments, I have been able to drive more proactive rather than reactive quality management.

The structured approach to non-conformance management that the training reinforced has helped reduce internal deviations significantly. Allergen control processes have been strengthened, audit readiness scores have improved substantially, and the development of performance dashboards has brought greater visibility and accountability to quality KPIs across the team.

The training gave me the tools to translate compliance requirements into practical, people-focused improvements on the ground.

Further operational improvements through training

Beyond the metrics, the training has also shaped how I lead and communicate within the team. Understanding the deeper rationale behind BRCGS requirements has allowed me to explain the "why" behind quality standards to production colleagues in a way that resonates and builds genuine buy-in.

This cultural shift, where food safety becomes everyone's responsibility rather than just the QA team's, is perhaps the most valuable operational improvement of all. It has contributed to a more proactive, engaged workforce and a quality environment that sustains itself beyond audit periods.

What are you most looking forward to within the Professional community?

I am most looking forward to the opportunity to connect, learn, and grow alongside other BRCGS-certified professionals from across the food and packaging industries.

Being part of a community that shares best practices, challenges, and innovations in food safety is incredibly exciting to me.

I am particularly keen to engage in discussions around emerging topics such as supply chain resilience, food fraud prevention, and evolving BRCGS requirements. I also hope to contribute my own experiences and insights to the community, particularly around audit leadership and building quality cultures in fast-paced manufacturing environments.

How do you plan to keep your skills up to date?

I plan to keep my skills current through a combination of formal CPD activities, active engagement with BRCGS updates and industry guidance, and participation in the BRCGS Professional community.

I will continue to pursue relevant training courses and certifications as standards evolve, particularly in areas such as FSSC 22000, food fraud, and supply chain risk.

I also believe strongly in learning from practical experience, so reflecting on real audit outcomes, sharing knowledge with colleagues, and staying connected to industry developments through professional networks and publications will remain central to my ongoing development.

What are your career ambitions/aims?

My ambition is to grow into a senior technical leadership role, ultimately working as a Quality or Technical Manager where I can shape food safety strategy at an organisational level.

I am passionate about building high-performing QA teams, influencing positive food safety culture, and contributing to the continuous improvement of industry standards.

In the longer term, I would love to work on a wider scale, perhaps in third-party auditing, consultancy, or technical advisory roles, where I can support multiple businesses in achieving and maintaining the highest levels of food safety compliance.

Above all, I aim to remain a professional who is trusted, credible, and genuinely impactful in everything I do.