Skip to main content

Pet Food Expertise

The Trusted Leader in Pet Food Manufacturing Solutions

shape
shape

The pet food market is entering a more competitive phase. As growth moderates, manufacturers are focused on improving efficiency, protecting margins, and maximizing the performance of every facility.

 

For six consecutive years, Gray has been named a Top 5 ENR Food & Beverage contractor—earning the No. 1 ranking three times. With fully integrated engineering, design, construction, automation, and equipment manufacturing services, we deliver seamless execution from concept through startup.

Whether building a new greenfield plant or optimizing an existing facility, Gray helps manufacturers create smarter, more flexible operations built for long-term success.

"What stood out to us was Gray’s overall capability of handling multiple disciplines of the project."
Dwight Howdeshell, Director of Production Engineering

Nestlé Purina North America

Gray’s dedicated, pet-focused team operates with precision and cohesiveness to deliver scalable solutions, from process optimization to plant design and construction. As your partner, we leverage our advanced equipment manufacturing, engineering, and construction teams to maximize safety, productivity, flexibility, and quality, ensuring your ability to innovate and respond rapidly to changing consumer demands.

 

Unmatched Pet Food Experience:

  • Gray has executed over $2.6 billion in pet food projects over past 5 years.
  • More than 1,000,000 metric tons of pet food and treats are produced annually on systems designed and installed by Gray.
  • Gray has designed and/or installed more than 20 protein grinding/mixing systems.
  • Gray engineers have designed and installed pet food systems for wet, high-meat (40-50% inclusion +) kibble as well as freeze-dried, dehydrated, and frozen products.
  • Gray has direct experience with testing, specifying, and selection efforts for Retort, HPP, UV, and temperature-based pasteurization/preservation systems.
  • On any day, more than 1,000 metric tons of raw materials for pet food production exist in Gray’s designed production staging spaces, and more than 1,200 metric tons of finished pet food products are stored in on-site production warehouse spaces built by Gray.

 

Connect with Gray today for a focused, customized solution or fully integrated project services for your next expansion, renovation, or process upgrade.

"With the rapidly evolving pet food market, we focus on building a world-class team of experts ranging from food safety specialists to facility designers and equipment engineers. Trained in the latest regulatory requirements and technological advancements, these teams become a trusted advisor to our pet food customers very early in the product development process. "
Tyler Cundiff, Executive Vice President, Integrated Sales

Services

  • Design

    Pre-Design

    Architecture

    Design Technology

    Specialized Services

    Post-Design

  • Engineering

    Civil engineering & site utility design

    Mechanical engineering

    Electrical engineering

    Refrigeration engineering

    Process & packaging systems engineering

    Post-design services

    Specialized services

  • Construction

    Pre-construction

    Facility

    Equipment

    Self-perform

    Strategic sourcing & procurement

  • Automation Solutions

    Automation & Controls

    Digital Transformation

    OT & Cybersecurity

    Robotics & Vision Systems

  • Specialty Equipment
    Custom equipment design-build Modular process skids
    OEM contract manufacturing Processing equipment
    Stainless-steel & specialty alloy fabrication Distributed products
  • Real Estate

    Incentive coordination

    Land acquisition

    Construction financing

    Build-to-suit/sale leaseback

"We see them interacting with other companies and other customers, we see their involvement in the community, and I think that further solidifies that we made a great decision and that we have a partner that we can work with into the future."
Frank Burdzy, Former President & CEO

Champion Petfoods

Featured Projects

View All Projects

Family of Companies. One Cohesive Team.

Founded in 1960, Gray has grown to encompass an integrated family of companies designed to complement each other’s specialized capabilities. Our robust offering—which includes strategy, operational improvements, construction, and engineering—enables us to create one-of-a-kind solutions at the highest levels of customization, delivering precision and partnership to some of the world’s most sophisticated organizations.

  • Gray AES delivers tailored design solutions for industrial facilities, offering in-house architecture and engineering expertise for greenfield projects, renovations, and expansions. With specialized focus and flexible delivery methods, such as design-build or design-bid-build, we provide comprehensive or discipline-specific services to meet our customers’ unique needs.

    Learn More

Meet the Team

Gray has a deep bench of leaders with the experience to advise on your most complex challenges.

Meet Gray's Leadership Team Meet Gray's Leadership Team

Related News & Insights

Get in Touch.

Call us at 859.281.5000 or send us a message using this contact form.