French animal feeds manufacturer Groupe Glon is expanding its business into petfoods and equine nutrition.

This move follows the recent acquisition by Groupe Glon of the company Sopral, which already produces about 20,000 metric tons of horse feed per year and owns the Flatazor brand of foods for dogs and cats. A statement from the group estimates that Sopral and Glon together produced around 20,000 metric tons of petfood in 2010, representing a 10% increase from 2009 numbers.

The new branch formed around Sopral will concentrate on selling through specialty channels. Glon marketing director Yannick Guelho has been named general manager of Sopral, assisted by Philippe Jolivet as deputy managing director.