Senior Breeder: Pure Species & Technology

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Your Mission:

• Manage and optimise seed orchards for pine and pure species eucalypts, ensuring genetic integrity, productivity, and long term sustainability
• Monitor flowering cycles, pollen viability, and seed production to support operational and research needs, and ensure a consistent and high quality supply of seed for operational planting
• Oversee pollen collection and storage
• Maintain detailed records of parentage, seed lots, and performance metrics

Advancement of Pure Species Eucalypt Populations

• Strategically advance base and elite populations of pure eucalypt species through recurrent selection, progeny testing, and orchard upgrades
• Identify and promote individuals with superior traits to drive long term genetic gain in growth, form, and wood quality
• Maintain genetic diversity while accelerating improvement cycles using both traditional and genomic tools
• Lead the selection, propagation, and field testing of E. dunnii clones for deployment in cold and warm temperate zones
• Communicate with tree improvement field operations regarding the annual plan of operations for seed germination, clonal propagation, trial establishment, and trial monitoring and assessment of E. dunnii clones
• Analyse data from clonal trials to assess heritability, clone performance, hybrid compatibility, and growth and wood properties across diverse cold temperate sites

Technical Innovation & Integration

• Evaluate and implement emerging technologies to accelerate breeding gains
• Partner with biotechnology, genomics, data engineering, and wood science teams to integrate molecular markers, phenotyping platforms, and predictive analytics into breeding workflows
• Stay abreast of global advances in tree breeding and adapt relevant innovations to local contexts
• Mentor and supervise research foresters and foresters in training to instil a culture of precision, innovation, and continuous learning
• Communicate with tree improvement field operations regarding the annual plan of operations for seed and pollen collection, orchard establishment and maintenance, as well as pure species trials and assessments
• Liaise with hybrid eucalypt breeders for selections of genetically improved hybrid parents to be infused into elite potted orchards and controlled pollination efforts
• Represent the breeding program in industry forums, research partnerships, and stakeholder engagements

Your profile:

• MSc or PhD in Forestry, Plant Breeding, Genetics, or related field
• 7-10+ years of experience in tree breeding, preferably eucalypts, with demonstrated success in pure species improvement, clonal development, and orchard management
• Proficiency in trial design and statistical analysis (e.g., ASReml, R)
• Familiarity with advanced breeding technologies and their practical application
• An understanding of the industry, products and services supplied is required
• Interpretation and implementation of plans and/or budgets
• Strong analytical skills
• Valid South African drivers license

We Offer:

• Location: MT Home Nursery
• Duration: Permanent
• Grade: D-Upper
• Learning & Development

We strive to create a culture that inspires our people to reach their full potential. Going the extra mile - for colleagues and customers - our people drive our passion for performance and are the key ingredient of Mondi's success. Be part of our future.

Do you want to know more about Mondi? We are a global leader in packaging and paper, contributing to a better world through innovative solutions that are sustainable by design. Our global team of 24,000 people works across 100 production sites in more than 30 countries.

Our strength lies in our diversity. We are dedicated to creating a team that reflects the diversity of the world we operate in. We believe in your potential and are committed to supporting you as you grow and learn at Mondi. If you need any accommodations during the recruitment process, please reach out to the contact person listed above.

Only CVs uploaded onto our online career platform will be taken into consideration. With your application, you will be redirected to our recruiting platform. After creating an account, you will receive an activation link. If you do not find the email in your inbox, please check your spam folder or add the address no to your "safe list" or address book.

Appointments will be made in line with our Employment Equity Plan. The above advert has minimum requirements listed; however, Management reserves the right to use additional/relevant information as criteria for shortlisting.

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