PET Food Processing - December 2021 - 14

PROCESSOR PROFILE
partners are growing peas, milo, barley and oats with
farmers committed to regenerative farming currently in
Kansas and Nebraska with plans to expand to other states.
Regenerative agriculture is a conservation and rehabilitation
approach to food and farming systems that focuses on
strengthening the health and vitality of farm soil.
A key component of this method is no-till farming.
Brauer explained that untilled soil can store up to five times
more water than tilled soil. When a field is tilled, water is
released into the air. Another important feature of regenerative
farming involves alternately growing cash crops and
then cover crops that typically consist of eight to 10 different
species of plants.
" A cover crop means I am never going to harvest that
crop for seed, " Brauer explained. " The reason I plant those
species is to build the soil's organic matter. This builds soil
resistance, which stores carbon and microbes, which in
turn feeds the plants instead of fertilizer. "
Part of Brauer's process also includes allowing grass-fed
sheep to graze on the cover crops, which requires moving
the sheep to new locations multiple times per day.
" We use the cover crops as a way to create fertility, soil
structure, prevent erosion and feed animals and that starts
to get you off synthetic fertilizers and herbicides over time, "
Brauer said. " That's the approach we take at this point. "
Outside of the crops Brauer grows for Canidae, he's
working with other farms through this process who have
joined the cooperative effort. From a farming perspective,
this approach offers several benefits.
" Surveys have been done that show that regenerative
farms in general are more profitable than non-regenerative, "
Brauer said. " You stabilize your input costs, and your
yields also start to stabilize. What we really are doing is trying
to create this cycle where it's feeding itself and the land
starts growing and stabilizing itself. "
For Canidae, this approach to farming and sourcing ingredients
checks all the boxes on the company's list of priorities
to bring more sustainable solutions to pets, people
and the planet.
" Besides doing good, we also see higher nutrient density
in the ingredients, but it's a process - it takes time, " Brauer
pointed out.
So long, single use
Another ambitious project for Canidae that reaches past
the company's production efforts is a first-of-its-kind partnership
with Petco designed to eliminate single-use pet
food bags. Canidae is testing a proprietary Kibble Refill
Top: Reducing one-time-use plastics by incorporating higher percentages
of recyled content in packaging is a priority for Canidae.
Bottom: Canidae's Pure brand offers limited-ingredient diets usually
featuring 10 or less main ingredients.
14 PET FOOD PROCESSING | December 2021 | www.petfoodprocessing.net
PET Food Processing - December 2021

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