Dogs have been part of human life for thousands of years, and today, pet ownership continues to grow. As demand increases, manufacturers rely on efficient, scalable systems to produce safe, consistent pet food.

Modern pet food processing equipment plays a critical role in this process, supporting everything from ingredient mixing to forming, coating, and quality control. These systems help ensure consistent product quality while improving production efficiency.

In this article, we’ll cover five essential types of pet food manufacturing equipment used across today’s processing lines.

5 Essential Pet Food Manufacturing Equipment Types

Today, there are many different types of pet food. This includes a wide range of pet types, from fish to birds to rodents to cats and dogs and many more, as well as many different types of food, including wet food, dry food, canned food, fresh food, and more. Different types of pet food utilize many different ingredients, processes and pet food manufacturing equipment. In this blog post we’ll take a look at a few of the most essential processes.

A startling 25% of Americans added a pet to their home in 2020. This was an especially difficult year, indicating that many of us rely on our pets for companionship and comfort. During this time, US pet food sales rose 10%, with e-commerce sales rising sharply. Increasingly, pet owners are seeing their pets as family members, which can have numerous benefits, mostly linked to reduced stress and loneliness.

With bonds between people and pets growing stronger, an increasing number of pet owners are looking for high-quality and specialty pet foods, including wet food and refrigerated food. However, dry pet food like kibble still remains the dominant type, accounting for 57% of pet food sales. Since cats and dogs are still by far the most popular type of pet, we’ll mainly discuss the essential pet food manufacturing equipment for dry dog and cat food.

Meeting Pet Food Processing’s Demands for the New Age
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Mixers

Industrial mixing is one of the most important steps in pet food production. Mixers ensure ingredients are blended evenly for consistent nutrition and product quality. Industrial mixing is one of the most important types of food processing equipment, including pet food. APEC’s horizontal ribbon mixers are widely used for dry pet food applications, handling everything from powders to heavier materials. Large-scale mixers make it possible to mix ingredients quickly, efficiently, and uniformly, processing 5, 10, even 15 tons of material at one time. These mixers are also capable of working with a wide range of materials, including very fine powders to thick liquids and tough solids.

For pet food processing, mixers can be important at several points, from mixing cornmeal and other grains to oils and fats, meat-based products, and more. Without large-scale pet food mixers, it would be difficult to process the amount of food we would need to reliably and affordably feed our pets.

Learn more about the horizontal ribbon mixer, one of the most popular mixers in the dry pet food industry >

Extruders

Extruders push mixed material, usually a dough or a paste, through a metal die to create uniform pieces. Extruders are important pet food processing equipment because they make it easy to create food that is easy to package, ship, and store. Extruders also create nutritionally uniform pellets, removing the guesswork in balancing protein, fats, carbohydrates, vitamins and minerals. In addition, these pellets are easy to work with, so they can be easily coated with flavorings and fats.

Spray Coating

Spray coating systems apply fats, oils, and flavorings to improve palatability and nutritional value. This step ensures pets receive consistent nutrients and an appealing taste. Adding fats and flavorings to kibble is important for making the food palatable for pets, but it’s also important to ensure that the pets get the right amount of fats, vitamins and minerals in their diet. Spray coating makes it easy to add liquid coatings to pellets. This process is both fast and efficient, so the pellets can move through the process quickly and get to packaging and then on to the customer and their pet.

Mist Coating

Mist coating provides a more uniform and efficient way to apply liquids using atomization. Compared to traditional spray systems, mist coating reduces waste and improves coating consistency. Mist coating takes liquid coating one step further, making it even easier and faster to apply liquid coatings to pellets. Mist coating equipment uses an atomizing system which turns liquid coatings into a fine mist, evenly coating the material as it falls through the coating chamber. When comparing liquid coating systems, mist coating is one of the most efficient methods, since it provides more even coating, reduces waste, requires less clean-up, and tends to be gentler on the pellets, decreasing breakage and loss. APEC’s systems are designed to deliver precise application while maintaining throughput.

Learn more about the Mistcoater >

Track and Tracing

Traceability is critical in modern pet food production. Track and trace systems help manufacturers monitor ingredients and finished products throughout the process. By tracking materials as they move through processing and distribution, manufacturers can identify where contamination occurred and take action to remove affected products before they cause further issues.

Though other processes are designed to kill bacteria and tests are designed to detect dangerous chemicals, no process is 100% effective. When bacteria or other dangers make their way into pet food, track and trace systems can show where the contamination came from, and pull the contaminated goods from the shelf as quickly as possible.

Optimize Your Pet Food Processing Line with APEC

From mixing and extrusion to coating and automated tracking, the right equipment is essential for producing consistent, high-quality pet food at scale. APEC designs and manufactures complete pet food processing systems tailored to your operation, helping you improve efficiency, accuracy, and product quality.

Whether you’re upgrading a single piece of equipment or building a fully integrated production line, our team can help you find the right solution for your application.