General Mills-owned pet food company Blue Buffalo has announced that it opened a new manufacturing facility in Richmond in Indiana.
The company has invested $200 million (€176.7 million) in the 400,000 square-foot manufacturing unit.
It will create 165 full-time jobs in food processing, quality assurance, maintenance, and plant management.
'Exceeds Industry Standards'
Billy Bishop, president of Blue Buffalo Pet Foods, said, "Our new state-of-the-art plant in Richmond exceeds industry standards in food safety and product quality, and will allow Blue Buffalo to feed more pets and reach more pet parents wherever they shop."
Blue Buffalo manufactures pet food from natural ingredients which are specifically formulated to provide superior nutrition to dogs and cats.
The new plant has incorporated the best-in-class hygienic design, in line with human food standards.
The unit is equipped to produce more than 1 million pounds of dry dog and cat food per day.
'Expanded Manufacturing Capability'
General Mills chairman and chief executive, Jeff Harmening, said, "With this expanded manufacturing capability, General Mills and Blue Buffalo can better meet the growing demand for pet food made with natural ingredients.
"This new plant is another example of General Mills accelerating the growth of our natural and organic brands," he added.
The construction of the plant began in 2016, and it is the second Blue Bell-owned manufacturing plant.
Blue Buffalo sells its products in speciality, grocery, and drug stores, as well as in mass merchandise retail outlets in North America.
It is also available on Amazon.com, Chewy.com, and other online stores.
In February of 2018, General Mills agreed to buy Blue Buffalo Pet Products for about $8 billion (€7.1 billion).
© 2019 European Supermarket Magazine – your source for the latest retail news. Article by Dayeeta Das. Click subscribe to sign up to ESM: The European Supermarket Magazine.
