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Pet food makers interviewed by GlobalPETS described increased spending, expanded quality teams and investments in traceability, testing and process controls. A 2026 CRB survey found 47% of more than 300 North American food and beverage manufacturers had increased food-safety-related operational investment over two years, but it did not report pet-food-specific results.
Pet food manufacturers are expanding quality teams, testing and traceability systems, according to company interviews in a GlobalPETS analysis, as a wider industry survey points to rising investment in food safety. The report highlights steps by Burgess Pet Care, Josera Petfood and Purely Golden Foods, though the survey data cited does not isolate the pet food sector.
Engineering and consulting firm CRB reported that 47% of more than 300 food and beverage manufacturers surveyed in North America increased investment in food-safety-related operational improvements compared with two years earlier. The finding covers food and beverage manufacturers broadly, not pet food makers alone. The report identifies traceability, analytical testing and digitalisation as areas gaining attention.
UK-based Burgess Pet Care increased food safety and quality control investment as a proportion of revenue by 63% over the past two years, Technical Manager Trish Parker told GlobalPETS. Parker said the spending covers staffing and training, laboratory tests, supplier assurance, quality systems, traceability, calibration, hygiene and process verification. Josera Petfood did not disclose its spending level, but said 40 people work across its quality management, quality assurance and laboratory functions. It has expanded those teams alongside a new plant in Poland, according to the company.
Both companies described systems for tracing ingredients and finished products. Josera said it can trace a batch to raw-material origins in less than four hours using a SAP-based system containing batch details and supplier records. Burgess said internal stock traces can take minutes, while supplier-level checks generally take up to two hours and are completed within four hours. Purely Golden Foods founder Irene Ou said ingredient lots are documented and linked to the finished batches in which they are used.
Faster Tracing and Stronger Process Checks
Traceability can help manufacturers identify affected batches and locate relevant suppliers when a safety issue prompts an investigation or recall. CRB found that 54% of surveyed manufacturers could trace products to their source within hours, while 29% said tracing could take up to a day. An average of 17% identified inadequate traceability as a key challenge in executing a recall within 24 hours. These figures are for the broader North American food and beverage sample, not pet food specifically.
For pet owners, stronger testing and documented controls may help companies verify ingredients, production conditions and consistency. The report describes measures including automated monitoring of temperature, weight and pressure, on-site tests and digital records. Those tools do not replace sanitation and production procedures: companies also cited validated cooking, cold-chain management, cleaning and sequencing to reduce contamination and ingredient carry-over risks.
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Industry Survey Meets Company Examples
The CRB report provides a sector-wide snapshot, while the company interviews offer examples of how individual pet food businesses are responding. It found that the share of respondents planning to integrate and digitalise facilities using predictive, real-time analytics rose from 39% in 2025 to 44% in 2026. CRB also reported that 67% of surveyed manufacturers use physical segregation to control allergens.
Companies described different approaches. Josera said automated in-line moisture measurement and analytical instruments can support production monitoring and faster testing. Burgess pointed to near-infrared spectroscopy, which can provide rapid information about material composition, alongside on-site testing and digital quality records. Purely Golden Foods described documented checks at each production stage and sanitation verification between production runs. CRB identified capital costs, uncertain returns and operational complexity as barriers to adopting advanced processing technologies.
““We can complete batch traceability in less than four hours.””
— Ulrike Waber, Head of Quality Assurance at Josera Petfood
Pet-Sector Spending Remains Uncounted
The CRB survey does not provide a separate estimate of investment or safety performance for pet food manufacturers. Its findings cannot establish how representative the interviewed companies are of the wider sector. Josera did not disclose spending amounts, and the report does not provide an industry-wide measure of recall outcomes or contamination rates before and after the investments described.
Some company statements describe internal capabilities and reported practices; they are not independent audits of performance. The source also begins a discussion of consumer concerns but does not provide the full finding or details about how those concerns affected purchasing or company decisions. The scale of adoption across pet food producers, and the costs and measurable results of the technologies, remain unclear.
Evidence on Results Still Needed
The next indicators to watch are whether manufacturers disclose more sector-specific spending and performance data, and whether companies report measurable results from new testing and traceability systems. Useful evidence would include independently verifiable information about trace times, audit findings and safety incidents, with clear time periods and comparison baselines.
For now, the report documents company-reported investments and practices alongside broader food-industry survey results. It does not establish that those changes have reduced incidents across the pet food market. Further sector-specific data would clarify how widespread the measures are and what impact they have.
Key Questions
What is the main development?
Several pet food makers interviewed by GlobalPETS described expanded investment or activity in quality teams, testing, traceability and production controls. The report places those examples alongside a broader food-industry survey showing increased food-safety investment among some manufacturers.
Does the 47% figure apply specifically to pet food companies?
No. CRB surveyed more than 300 North American food and beverage manufacturers, and the survey did not break out pet food results. The figure means 47% reported increased food-safety-related operational investment compared with two years earlier.
How quickly can the companies trace a batch?
Josera said it can trace a batch to raw-material origins in less than four hours. Burgess said internal stock traces can take minutes and supplier-level traces generally take up to two hours, with all completed within four hours.
What remains unknown about the investments?
The report does not establish how widespread these measures are across the pet food sector or whether they have reduced contamination, recalls or other safety incidents. It also does not provide a separate industry-wide spending total or measured return on the technologies.
Source: globalpetindustry.com
