Pet Food Processing - January 2025 - 59

OPERATIONS
labor
CHALLENGES
Use a multi-prong approach to stay ahead in the
evolving landscape of hiring and retention.
By Jennifer Barnett Fox | petfoodprocessing@sosland.com
Industries across the board are working to retain their
current staff and to attract new employees in a competitive
labor market. Within the pet food and treat industry,
labor shortages and increased production demands
are adding to hiring and retention difficulties.
In 2020, US pet food and treat sales reached $42 billion,
a 9.7% increase from 2019, leading to intensified
production demands and labor constraints. Between
March 2021 and March 2022, manufacturing job pay
rates increased from $26.69 to $27.96 per hour, reflecting
the escalating expenses companies face, according to
Frank Niles, Ph.D., principal, business transformation
and leader development, BSM Partners, Bentonville, Ark.
Manufacturing as a whole has long contended with high
turnover. In 2021, the sector experienced a turnover rate
of 39.9%. Likewise, pet food manufacturers continue to
see high rates of employee turnover, leading to increased
recruitment and training costs. These elements, coupled
with ongoing automation result in a shortage of qualified
candidates - exacerbating recruitment challenges.
Bridging the gaps
During his tenure as an executive and technical recruiter
for the industry, Jamie Griffin of WorldBridge Partners,
Toledo, Ohio, has witnessed an evolution - not only
in how pet food is produced but also within the people
who choose to work in the profession. These are individuals
who care about the end product and often feed
these products to their own pet, Griffin said.
Retirement has also placed a tremendous amount of
pressure on the industry with a rate of 5 to 2, meaning for
every five people retiring, there are only two people to
replace those individuals, resulting in a net negative. The
Companion Animal Program at Kansas State University,
Manhattan, is looking to change those numbers by providing
an educational path that is specific to making pet
food and treats. While this is helping to change the trajectory,
Griffin said it's not yet large enough to meet the
demand of the industry and many fail to realize just how
technical the industry has become.
" The growing complexity of the industry has brought
the need for more specialists, and that's created some
difficulty between what's currently available and the
needs of the company, " he continued. " While the initial
reaction may be, 'it's just pet food,' many do not realize
how technical the industry is, and there are a huge percentage
of people with Ph.D.s considering the number of
employees in the industry. "
Gaps in the industry's workforce pipeline are evident
in both numbers and skills, presenting real operational
challenges for pet food manufacturers, according
to Jennifer Martin, Ph.D., assistant professor
in the Department of Animal Sciences, Colorado State
University, Fort Collins. Within the industry, skilled
www.petfoodprocessing.net | Jan-Feb 2025 | PET FOOD PROCESSING 59
Proper training and
opportunities for
advancement are
strong incentives
for workers in
manufacturing.
Ashlyn McKibben
http://www.petfoodprocessing.net
Pet Food Processing - January 2025

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