“And not just making nutritious cat and dog food, which we do day in and day out at this facility,” Layton said.

Nestle Purina purchased a plot of land on First Avenue South, where the strip mall that houses Godfather’s Pizza is located, in 2019.

“We don’t actually have any current plans set for that property,” Layton said. “It does position us well for growth should a future opportunity arise, but for right now, there’s no current plans set.”

Nestle Purina also finished a major project on its grounds replacing its wastewater pre-treatment facility.

-Submitted photo
Sharlotte Hiracheta works in the packaging area at Nestle Purina PetCare in Fort Dodge.

“The point of that investment is to update the technology and the actual equipment,” Layton said.

The plant had always had a pre-treatment facility, but moved to a new one when it was time to update the equipment.

“That was a major project last year, including a lot of different infrastructure projects on the inside of the plant,” Layton said. “I think it’s good we’re investing in the long term here in Fort Dodge because we’re taking care of our infrastructure.”

“Near and dear” to Layton’s heart in 2019 was the Women in Manufacturing event that Nestle Purina co-hosted with Iowa Central last fall. It was an outreach opportunity for Nestle Purina to go out into the community and talk about career opportunities for women in the manufacturing industry.

“As a company, we believe in having a diverse workforce and that our factories should reflect the communities they operate in,” Layton said. “It was an easy choice for us to step up and really help out with that initiative.”

-Submitted photo
Austin Elliott and Todd Lennon work at the Nestle Purina PetCare factory in Fort Dodge.

As the No. 1 pet care company in the United States, Nestle Purina feeds 55 million dogs a year and 67 million cats a year.

The Fort Dodge production facility currently employs around 225 local community members.

“We get really good people that work here,” Layton said. “They’re passionate about what they do; they’re passionate about their pets. One thing that we’re passionate about as a company, as Nestle Purina, is obviously the health and welfare of pets, specifically providing nutritious food for them that enhances their lives. We’re able to find an employment base that shares that same passion here in Fort Dodge.”

The Fort Dodge Purina PetCare factory produces much of the canned cat food sold across the country, as well as the Mighty Dog canned dog food. Some of the products produced in Fort Dodge are also exported to other countries.

Purina makes it a priority to invest in research and development, Layton said, producing new versions of various pet foods from pate style to meat with gravy style and more, all to provide better nutrition and a better taste for pets.

Some of the canned products have what the staff call “inclusions,” like whole pieces of rice, peas, scallops and more.

Nestle Purina PetCare has a deep history in central Iowa.

2020 is the 45th anniversary of the Fort Dodge facility.

“The building and grounds first came into creation in 1946, but we really started manufacturing Friskies, the brand of cat food, in 1975, so this will be the 45th year,” Layton said. “We will have an event that we’re planning. It’s a good time to kind of take a break and celebrate our longevity in the community and take stock of the history that we’ve built over the last 45 years.”

The Nestle Purina factory even supports other local businesses.

Most of the factory’s aluminum cans for its products – more than 75% – are manufactured by Silgan Containers in Fort Dodge.

The factory also has a “zero waste disposal” initiative, meaning no waste goes to the landfill, Layton said.

Nestle Purina is proud to be an active part of the Fort Dodge community, Layton said. The company is a sponsor for the Brushy Creek Area Honor Flight; it was a major sponsor of the Fort Dodge Police Department’s new K-9, Draco; and it supports the Almost Home animal shelter.

The inside of the factory is “very high-tech,” Layton said, which has helped lead Nestle Purina into a partnership with Iowa Central Community College.

“We interview hourly operators who are interested in the technical field, and we developed a good program through Iowa Central, where we’ll actually sponsor them to go through Iowa Central’s mechanical maintenance program,” Layton said.

This partnership benefits both the employee and Nestle Purina.

“We’re investing in them as employees, but at the other end, they’re gaining skills that are beneficial for the company,” Layton said. “It’s kind of a win-win. There’s this big need in the manufacturing area for technical competencies — our maintenance people work on anywhere from motors to robots, so you have to have a pretty broad skill set.”

Layton said Nestle Purina PetCare will be focused on its future in Fort Dodge throughout 2020.

“We’re still continuing to invest in our infrastructure,” he said. “Coming up later this summer, we have another big capital job. We’re basically doing some replacement parts of our thermal processing system. So that will involve some different construction. That’s a major investment in a critical piece of our operation. It talks to the longevity and the investment in the facility here for the future.”