Digitalisation reaches the pet food industry

Digitalisation reaches the pet food industry

If you have pets, you already know this. If you don’t, here it is: there is growing evidence that pets are a real treasure. People have always said they are our best friends and that they bring benefits to our physical, mental and emotional health.

There is no doubt that lockdowns and the restrictions during the pandemic strengthened our bond with them. And there is no doubt either that, on the other side of that bond, we are responsible for providing everything they need to stay healthy and happy—and nutrition is one of the most important aspects to achieve it.

The value of the pet food sector: steady growth

The dog and cat food industry has been on a growth path for years, backed by figures that confirm its consolidation within the industrial landscape.

  • Production has recorded sustained increases over the last decade, growing from 905t to 1,031t.
  • The value of the industry has followed the same upward trend, and in 2020 we saw figures pointing to 4%.
  • Exports have grown for the fifth consecutive year.

Pet food is constantly evolving and changing, with new alternatives emerging as a response to trends or as a concrete solution to different needs. The industry continues to expand its product catalogue with a variety of formats driven by different diets, lifestyles and quantities. The online channel is gaining strength in the sector. And in recent years we have seen an increase in the number of players, which raises the need to be competitive in order to keep growing.

Just as food and beverage consumption trends for humans point the way towards digitalisation, in the pet food sector digital transformation provides the strength and support to keep the industry more alive than ever.

Your pet’s food is being digitalised too

A clear example is one of our clients: the number 1 private-label manufacturer of dog and cat food, supplying the national market—serving the largest retailer in the country—and also customers worldwide. With more than 30 years of experience, it is a recognised company in the world of pet nutrition.

Their effort and dedication focus on developing their product offering and responding to a demanding market with the best quality and service level. That is why in recent years they have made a series of investments to:

  • Increase and flexibilise production capacity.
  • Expand product portfolio and formats.

To meet this challenge, the company has relied on MAVAL as its technology partner. As a Siemens partner specialised in the Food & Beverage vertical (which includes pet food), we have worked—and continue to work—on implementing solutions at every level of production.

Complete solutions across all levels

At the automation level, the plant faced the task of increasing ingredient conveying speed. To do so, we developed a pneumatic conveying system together with a CIP (Clean In Place) system, enabling the company not only to increase production in batches per hour, but also to ensure ingredient weighing and reduce waste.

One level above, we implemented a SCADA system based on Siemens PCS 7 technology. A robust and flexible solution that provides powerful tools, functions and features to operate the plant profitably and efficiently across all phases of the lifecycle.

In one of the most recent moves, the company decided to go a step further, and we worked on operational efficiency with MES/MOM and LIMS solutions. Leveraging Siemens technology and MAVAL’s implementation experience, the client now:

  • Has traceability for the finished product and full real-time visibility of plant operations.
  • Integrates the work of key departments through the MES connection to automation and ERP.
  • Can run in-line quality checks and reduce end-of-line non-conformities.

In addition, this positions them at the starting line of e-commerce, enabling more tailored and varied production runs with the agility these new tools provide.

Future plans

These include implementing a production planning solution (APS) and a specification management system to accelerate new R&D developments.

The journey to the smart factory is a long one and full of challenges, but in every step taken with this client we have reached milestones that have helped them achieve their objectives: product, quality and service.

Technology is not only at the service of people, but also of our pets—so they can grow healthy and happy and continue to keep us company.

Are you more of a dog person or a cat person? Tell us.