Purina Opens $550 Million Pet Food Factory in Ohio

Nestlé Purina PetCare has officially opened a new pet food manufacturing facility in Batavia, Ohio, following an investment of more than $550 million in the site.

The factory, which began operations before its August 31 grand opening, is Purina's first new factory built from the ground up since 1975. Covering 1.3 million square feet, the facility is the company's 24th manufacturing plant in the United States and its second in Ohio, alongside its Zanesville factory.

The Batavia site is already producing Purina Pro Plan, Purina ONE and Dog Chow. More than 430 employees currently work at the facility, with the workforce expected to exceed 500 when the plant is fully operational. Purina says the factory is designed to help produce food for approximately eight million pets annually.

Technology is a central part of the facility's design. The factory incorporates advanced food-safety systems, digital manufacturing tools, robotics and automation, as well as an Automated Storage and Retrieval System (ASRS). Its 10-plus-story design is intended to support efficient production and greater flexibility across Purina's manufacturing network.

For the wider pet-food supply chain, the investment highlights the scale of capital required to build modern manufacturing capacity. It also illustrates how automation and digital systems are becoming increasingly integrated into large food-production facilities, where manufacturers need to combine high-volume production with food safety, storage efficiency and the ability to adjust output across different products.

The project was first announced in 2020, making the August 2026 opening the culmination of several years of construction and workforce development.

For international pet-food suppliers and buyers, the Batavia facility is another development worth monitoring as Purina expands its U.S. manufacturing footprint and adds production capacity for several major pet-food brands.