PET Food Processing - September 2020 - 15

PLANT PROFILE

SOMETHING TO

CHEW ON
Specializing in long-lasting dog chews, Kansas City Treats
manufactures a broad range of products for both cats and dogs.
By Jennifer Semple | jsemple@sosland.com

Extruded and co-extruded dental and long-lasting
chews are currently the primary products produced by
Kansas City Treats. The treat manufacturer based in
Kansas City, Kan., also produces dry and semi-moist
treats, supplements, vegan formulas, as well as resins
used for injection-molded treats in its 96,000-sq-ft processing facility in the heart of America.
Kansas City Treats is in good company. The Midwest
is home to a large percentage of both finished-goods
manufacturing and ingredient suppliers to the companion animal industry. A recent study commissioned by
the Institute for Feed Education and Research, Pet Food
Institute and North American Renderers Association
determined that the states reaping the biggest economic
benefits from the pet food industry are situated primarily in the Midwest, where most crops are grown and most
animals are raised. Manufacturers purchased the greatest amount of products from farmers and farm products
in Missouri, valued at $999 million, followed by Kansas
at $574 million. That's nearly $1.6 billion of the $6.9
billion total pet food ingredient market from just two
midwestern states.

All in the family
As a contract manufacturer to the pet food and treat
industry, Kansas City Treats not only benefits from its
proximity in the Midwest to its customers and its suppliers but it benefits from being part of J-Six Enterprises,

headquartered in Seneca, Kan., which describes itself as a full-circle service provider. J-Six purchased
Kansas City Treats in 2017 as the perfect complement
to the company's other capabilities. J-Six is comprised
of 11 different facilities across Kansas, Missouri and
Nebraska, several of which operate under the name of
Fairview Mills. Fairview Mills supplies ingredients and
premixes as well as ingredient storage and trucking services to a large number of pet food manufacturers.
In total, the company stores and supplies more than
400 different ingredients. In addition to farming and
livestock production, J-Six operates a pelleting facility
that supplies pelleted products for both pet food and
industrial applications. A common pelleted ingredient J-Six provides for pet food and treat applications
is alfalfa powder, which is often used to help achieve a
natural green color in injection-molded treats. Through
Fairview Mills, J-Six produces an average of 4,000 tons
per week of pre-mixed ingredients.
J-Six was founded in 1972 by John and Janie Kramer
and currently employs more than 400 people including
23 Kramer family members - 12 full-time and 11 parttime - many of whom are college students, summer interns or helpers. J-Six grew over the years by providing
services that the industry wasn't providing at the time,
from specialized pelleting of hard-to-handle ingredients
or ingredients that don't flow well, to specialty blending,
grinding and packaging.

Since 2017, Kansas
City Treats has
been part of J-Six
Enterprises, a
400-person strong,
full-circle provider
to the pet food, pet
treat and animal
feed industries.
(From left: Wade
Willming, Buddy,
Lexi, and Troy
Kramer.)
Photos provided by:
Kansas City Treats

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

http://www.petfoodprocessing.net

PET Food Processing - September 2020

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