$550M investment aims to help satisfy pet food demand

The Buckeye State is set to be home to a new pet food factory, thanks to a $550-million investment from Nestle Purina PetCare.

The company announced a new manufacturing facility in Williamsburg Township, Ohio. The 1.2 million-sf factory, which is expected to be operational by 2023, is set to employ more than 300 people, including professional staff members, production operators, engineers, and technicians.

The site will join the company’s network of 21 existing manufacturing locations across the U.S. and marks Purina’s first factory built from the ground up since 1975.

“Clermont County is an excellent location for Purina’s newest factory, thanks to the region’s distribution opportunities, a workforce with great potential, and strong community values,” says Nolan Terry, Purina’s vice president of manufacturing. “We have a unique opportunity to bring all of our best technical and innovative manufacturing thinking under one roof as we construct this facility from the ground up.”

The factory follows last month’s groundbreaking of a new Purina pet food factory in North Carolina.