Cats in China and Australia will soon be gobbling
products from a state-of-the-art New Zealand factory built
to supply rising global demand for premium pet
food.
Officially opened by New Zealand’s
Minister for Trade and Agriculture Todd McClay, the
Christchurch plant is tailormade to supply niche markets
offshore in a $NZ155 billion industry feeding growing
numbers of pets worldwide.
Developed by New Zealand
Riverland Foods Limited, the factory has the capacity to
make 30 million cans of pet food annually.
“Today is
a double celebration,” said Riverland general manager
Michael Dance, “as we are opening our factory and we’re
signing our first two contracts to make pet food for
overseas brands.”
Riverland’s $US21 million ($NZ35
million) plant is a first for New Zealand as it produces
exclusively for its clients’ brands, removing a logjam
that limited New Zealand as a go-to destination for third
party manufacturing, and supporting government aims to ramp
up value-add exports.
At the opening, Minister McClay
said pet food was an emerging high growth market for New
Zealand. Industry data showed New Zealand pet food exports
had quadrupled in less than a decade, increasing from $NZ75
million a year in 2014 to $NZ320 million in 2023, he
said.
“This state-of-the-art facility – an important
new addition to the Christchurch business landscape – will
no doubt have a significant economic impact going forward as
a global player in our growing pet food industry, helping to
bring New Zealand’s high-quality, sustainable, and
nutritious pet products to the world,” the Minister
said.
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Signing today as inaugural customers for the
plant’s output were United Laboratories International
Holdings Limited from China and Talentail from
Australia.
“We’re thrilled to be able to start a
partnership with two well respected companies and we look
forward to a continued relationship with them and agreeing
terms with further clients in a few weeks,” Dance
said.
United Labs is listed on the Hong Kong stock
exchange and one of its subsidiaries specialises in animal
medicines for veterinarians and pet hospitals.
“The
United Labs subsidiary has been looking to develop its own
pet food range and so they've come to us to help launch a
range of cat foods, each with a functional component to
target a particular nutritional need, which could be for
skin and coat, or perhaps gut health.”
Talentail is
an established brand in Australia currently supplying dry
pet food to their global markets and wants to diversify by
adding wet food to its range. While dry pet foods have their
advantages, wet foods typically contain higher levels of
protein and minerals, aid pet hydration, and typically offer
greater palatability. Talentail believes the addition of wet
food will create a great combination of high-quality food
from Oceania region for their global
customers.
“We’re open for business to export to
Australia, Hong Kong, South Korea, North America and
Singapore,” Dance said, adding that all regulatory
approvals had been obtained, apart from to mainland China.
Approval there is expected soon.
Riverland’s
location in Christchurch is a key advantage due to its
proximity to sea and rail transport links and suppliers of
quality raw materials used as ingredients in pet food, Dance
said.
“Canterbury is close to a host of suppliers of
raw produce such as red meat, fish, shellfish, and fresh
fruit. And its meat products are sourced from animals reared
on pasture-based systems and have good provenance, which our
customers see as highly desirable,” Dance
said.
Being close to the suppliers of ingredients and
research and development capability mean Riverlands can do
things that other pet food manufacturers
can’t.
Dance noted that cat food has been a rising
category since the Covid epidemic.
“Before Covid it
was more dog focused but we’re seeing more cat inquiries
now as you don’t need to take your cat out for
exercise,” Dance said.
The next step for Riverland
is attending trade shows in coming months to gradually
increase the output from the factory, which has been built
to enable expansion as more customers come on
board.
Minister McClay said New Zealand's pet food
sector is known for its emphasis on sustainable practices,
catering to growing demand for premium pet food products
globally.
“It has been a pleasure to visit and see
first-hand the investment and opportunity underpinning this
exciting new venture that will no doubt play a key role in
expanding and growing our global footprint,” he
concluded.
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