PET Food Processing - March 2020 - 17

PLANT PROFILE

ONS

As the recipient of several
manufacturing awards,
Champion Petfoods' DogStarĀ®
kitchen is setting a high bar for
safe pet food production.
By Jennifer Semple | jsemple@sosland.com

FAST FACTS
Founded: 1985
Headquarters: Alberta, Canada
Manufacturing: Alberta and Auburn,
Kentucky
Brands: ORIJEN and ACANA
Markets: Serving 100 countries
Preferred channel: Neighborhood
pet stores
Product types: Dry kibble,
freeze-dried foods and treats

In 2016 when Canadian-based Champion Petfoods built
its first US processing facility in Auburn, Kentucky, the
company looked to meet or exceed human food manufacturing food safety standards. The awards bestowed
on the DogStarĀ® kitchen, the certifications earned, and a
tour of the impressive facility make it clear the company
met its goal.
From Safe Quality Food (SQF) certification in its first
year of operation to winning the first-ever Global Markets
Award from the Global Food Safety Initiative (GFSI) to
receiving a national design-build award for Lexington,
Kentucky-based Gray from the Design-Build Institute
of America (DBIA) to winning the Kentucky Governor's
award for global trade, the accolades keep flowing as does
the pet food and treat production at the 371,000-sq.-ft.
facility on an 85-acre site, 30 acres of which are devoted to
kitchen operations.
Strong growth in the US market and a corporate commitment to formulate with fresh regional ingredients
drove the decision by Champion to build a manufacturing
plant in the US. The US is Champion's largest market and
the company chose Kentucky because of the size and diversity of its agriculture. "Kentucky is the 43rd largest state
which means it's not a huge state, but it has the fourthhighest number of small to medium farms," explains Keith
Arnold, director, treats and breakout innovation, and the
original kitchen manager at DogStar. "Kentucky has a lot
of agriculture, both ranching and farming, and that's the
reason we looked specifically at Kentucky. We have what
we call featured farmers and growers. We like supporting
their businesses and they really care about their quality,
and also where their products are going. We love the relationship that we have with our farmers."

As the maker of ORIJEN
and ACANA premium pet
food brands, Champion
made food safety the guiding principle for its DogStar
kitchen, the company's first
US processing facility.
Photos by Courage Media

Trust, a necessary ingredient
Staying true to the company's guiding principle, all diets were reformulated to include regional ingredients.

www.petfoodprocessing.net | March 2020 | PET FOOD PROCESSING

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PET Food Processing - March 2020

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of PET Food Processing - March 2020

PET Food Processing - March 2020
Contents
OFF THE LEASH - Dearth of data
TRENDS - Pets vs. planet
PLANT PROFILE - Recognized as Champions
FOOD SAFETY - Plan, test, improve, repeat
REGULATORY - Building on success
INGREDIENTS - Balanced benefits
FORMULATION - Understanding palatability
EQUIPMENT - Eye on dry
EQUIPMENT - Key to kibble control
OPERATIONS - 21st century pest control
PACKAGING - The singles scene
BEST IN SHOW
PATENTS TO PONDER
EVENTS
CLASSIFIED ADVERTISING
AD INDEX
SIT, STAY, READ
PET Food Processing - March 2020 - PET Food Processing - March 2020
PET Food Processing - March 2020 - PET Food Processing - March 2020
PET Food Processing - March 2020 - 2
PET Food Processing - March 2020 - 3
PET Food Processing - March 2020 - 4
PET Food Processing - March 2020 - Contents
PET Food Processing - March 2020 - OFF THE LEASH - Dearth of data
PET Food Processing - March 2020 - 7
PET Food Processing - March 2020 - 8
PET Food Processing - March 2020 - TRENDS - Pets vs. planet
PET Food Processing - March 2020 - 10
PET Food Processing - March 2020 - 11
PET Food Processing - March 2020 - 12
PET Food Processing - March 2020 - 13
PET Food Processing - March 2020 - 14
PET Food Processing - March 2020 - 15
PET Food Processing - March 2020 - PLANT PROFILE - Recognized as Champions
PET Food Processing - March 2020 - 17
PET Food Processing - March 2020 - 18
PET Food Processing - March 2020 - 19
PET Food Processing - March 2020 - 20
PET Food Processing - March 2020 - 21
PET Food Processing - March 2020 - 22
PET Food Processing - March 2020 - 23
PET Food Processing - March 2020 - 24
PET Food Processing - March 2020 - 25
PET Food Processing - March 2020 - 26
PET Food Processing - March 2020 - FOOD SAFETY - Plan, test, improve, repeat
PET Food Processing - March 2020 - 28
PET Food Processing - March 2020 - 29
PET Food Processing - March 2020 - 30
PET Food Processing - March 2020 - 31
PET Food Processing - March 2020 - 32
PET Food Processing - March 2020 - REGULATORY - Building on success
PET Food Processing - March 2020 - 34
PET Food Processing - March 2020 - 35
PET Food Processing - March 2020 - 36
PET Food Processing - March 2020 - INGREDIENTS - Balanced benefits
PET Food Processing - March 2020 - 38
PET Food Processing - March 2020 - 39
PET Food Processing - March 2020 - 40
PET Food Processing - March 2020 - 41
PET Food Processing - March 2020 - 42
PET Food Processing - March 2020 - FORMULATION - Understanding palatability
PET Food Processing - March 2020 - 44
PET Food Processing - March 2020 - 45
PET Food Processing - March 2020 - 46
PET Food Processing - March 2020 - 47
PET Food Processing - March 2020 - 48
PET Food Processing - March 2020 - EQUIPMENT - Eye on dry
PET Food Processing - March 2020 - 50
PET Food Processing - March 2020 - 51
PET Food Processing - March 2020 - 52
PET Food Processing - March 2020 - 53
PET Food Processing - March 2020 - 54
PET Food Processing - March 2020 - 55
PET Food Processing - March 2020 - 56
PET Food Processing - March 2020 - EQUIPMENT - Key to kibble control
PET Food Processing - March 2020 - 58
PET Food Processing - March 2020 - 59
PET Food Processing - March 2020 - 60
PET Food Processing - March 2020 - OPERATIONS - 21st century pest control
PET Food Processing - March 2020 - 62
PET Food Processing - March 2020 - 63
PET Food Processing - March 2020 - 64
PET Food Processing - March 2020 - 65
PET Food Processing - March 2020 - 66
PET Food Processing - March 2020 - PACKAGING - The singles scene
PET Food Processing - March 2020 - 68
PET Food Processing - March 2020 - 69
PET Food Processing - March 2020 - 70
PET Food Processing - March 2020 - 71
PET Food Processing - March 2020 - 72
PET Food Processing - March 2020 - 73
PET Food Processing - March 2020 - BEST IN SHOW
PET Food Processing - March 2020 - 75
PET Food Processing - March 2020 - PATENTS TO PONDER
PET Food Processing - March 2020 - 77
PET Food Processing - March 2020 - 78
PET Food Processing - March 2020 - EVENTS
PET Food Processing - March 2020 - CLASSIFIED ADVERTISING
PET Food Processing - March 2020 - AD INDEX
PET Food Processing - March 2020 - SIT, STAY, READ
PET Food Processing - March 2020 - 83
PET Food Processing - March 2020 - 84
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