The Manufacturing Process of dog food

Except for the ingredients, the general manufacturing process for pet food is similar to that for processed food. The flesh products used in pet foods must first be rendered, or processed, to separate the water, fat, and protein components, including soft offals (viscera) and hard offals (e.g. bones and hoofs). Generally, meat is rendered by out-side companies and shipped to pet food manufacturers. The meat products intended for canned food must be delivered fresh and used within three days. Frozen meat products may be used for dry foods.

The manufacturing process entails grinding and cooking the flesh and flesh byproducts. Next, the meat is mixed with the other Pet Food ingredients, and if the recipe requires, the mixture is shaped into the appropriate forms. The finished product is filled into containers and shipped to distributors.

Innovations in pet food processing and packaging have led to better quality products with longer shelf life. Canned dog foods that are vacuum packed have a shelf life of three to five years and are very stable with little or no loss in nutritional value. Dry dog food, on the other hand, has a shelf life of only 10 to 12 months and requires the addition of preservatives, though some manufacturers are using natural preservatives such as vitamins E and C.

Rendering the meat

1 Generally, rendering is performed by meat processors. Rendering entails rupturing fat cells, either by heat or enzymatic- and solvent-extraction, and then drying the residue.

2 The meat products are coarsely ground to the desired texture.

3 To facilitate further processing, the ground meat is cooked in a continuous cooker with live steam at the appropriate temperature.

4 The flesh products are reground after initial cooking to produce a more uniform consistency. For semi-moist or chunky foods, the batches are deliberately cooked unevenly to create the desired chunky texture.

5 The meat mixture is blended with other ingredients such as cereal grains, vitamins, and minerals.

6 Dry and semi-moist foods are usually heated so the mixture will partially dextrinize, or thicken, the starch. To achieve the marbled-look of real meat, the meat mixture may be cooked unevenly and half of the batch colored red and the other white. Semimoist foods must be stabilized to retain the proper amount of moisture in the dry and semi-moist parts of the food.

7 Dry and semi-moist foods may be extruded under high pressure through a device with orificed plates to obtain the shape and size of the specific product, for instance, the form of biscuits, kibbles, meat-balls, patties, pellets, or slices. An alternative to extrusion is to gelatinize and expand the mixture. For marbled meat, the mixture of red and white meat is extruded together and broken into chunks.

8 Measured amounts of the product are packaged into appropriate containers. Dry foods are poured into pre-printed containers. Moist canned foods are vacuum sealed to reduce the oxygen content and prevent spoilage of fats in the food.

Sterilizing

9 Cans of pet food are sterilized by passing them through a retort, or heating chamber. The retort may be either a batch or continuous hydrostatic type. The cans are heated to about 250°F (121°C) for 80 minutes, though the cooking temperatures and times depend on the contents, steam pressure, and can size.

10 The cans are quickly cooled to about 100°FO (38°C). Next, the cans are dried and labeled.

11 The containers are packaged into corrugated cardboard boxes or shrink-wrapped with plastic in corrugated cardboard trays. The pet food is ready for shipping to distributors.

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