The J. M. Smucker Company Pet Food and Snacks
Consumer appetites for health- conscious offerings in palate-pleasing combinations and a range of packaging options extend to their pets’ dietary needs as well as their own.
CAPACITY AND CAPABILITY
Topeka’s J. M. Smucker 1.2 million-square-foot production plant produces a variety of well-known
dry pet food products and chewy and baked snacks for dogs and cats, including Meow Mix and Nature’s Recipe. Now a recently completed multimillion investment has created additional capacity and capability to formulate products with more complex ingredients.
“People are just as focused on what they feed their pets as they are on what they feed their families and we strive to accommodate their increasingly complex and diverse preferences,” said Luke Livingston, plant manager. “In addition to producing new pet food formulas, this investment allows us to create different types of packaging sizes and features for our products too.”
The investment included the installation of new equipment, silo storage capacity and additional batching capabilities. The plant is in the process of adding a fourth shift to its 24/7 operations and plans to add 30 employees to the team, bringing its full-time workforce to 450.
Livingston said the economic impact of the corporation’s capital investment extends well beyond the plant itself through the hiring of many local contractors.
50 YEARS OF INNOVATION
Set to celebrate its 50th anniversary in 2021, Livingston said the production site has had different corporate ownership through the years but its reputation for innovation and consistent, high- quality execution have continued regardless of the name on the building.
He said several plant employees have more than 40 years of service and many have worked at the facility for the majority of their careers.
“This site has a long high- performance history in developing and delivering new products, which made it an ideal candidate for this significant corporate investment,”he said. “One of the keys to our achievement is our partnership with our workforce and our commitment to empower them with the tools they need to be successful, especially as we continue to evolve.”
A relationship with Washburn Institute of Technology provides opportunities for further skill development as a complement to internal training programs to assist employees in expanding their abilities as new opportunities arise.
Along with its reputation for workforce productivity and innovation, Livingston said being located in “the breadbasket of the country” along the I-70 Pet Corridor with nearby access to meat and grain ingredients, support technology, and food safety programs and systems also gives the Topeka location a competitive edge.
