Petfood Essentials 2026 agenda focuses on business efficiency

Petfood Essentials 2026 will focus on "Efficiency unleashed: Optimizing your pet food business," addressing the need for pet food and treat companies to operate cost-effectively amid ongoing economic uncertainty.

The daylong interactive educational seminar, which will be held April 27, 2026, the day prior to Petfood Forum in Kansas City, Missouri, U.S., will feature experts providing practical guidance on controlling costs, streamlining operations, optimizing formulations and supply chains, and improving manufacturing efficiency through various tools and technologies, including artificial intelligence.

"Petfood Essentials is one of the very few — possibly the only — pet food seminars that focuses on a specific theme, allowing for a deep dive into various aspects of that subject," said Debbie Phillips-Donaldson, editor-in-chief of Petfood Industry. "The program is aimed at people who might be newer to the pet food industry or needing to know more about the topic."

Opening session examines global trade impacts

Dana Waters, director of international affairs at Pet Food Institute, will present the opening session, "Opportunities and challenges for pet food in today's global trade environment." 

Waters will explain how the U.S. federal government's commitment to reshape the global trading system through resetting trade balances and establishing reciprocal tariff rates creates direct implications for the pet food industry. The session will examine whether recent tariffs have led to trade agreements delivering tangible benefits to U.S. pet food manufacturers or introduced new barriers, and how this evolving trade environment affects supply chain stability and the continued importation of critical ingredients necessary for pet food production.

Petfood Essentials will include an interactive exercise to help participants apply insights and develop actionable ideas for their own businesses.Paul Ward PhotographyProgram addresses operational challenges across business functions

The 2026 program will cover topics including macroeconomic outlook and market impacts, formulation optimization using software solutions, supply chain maximization including new ingredient sourcing, production facility setup for optimal efficiency, and packaging cost reduction strategies that maintain quality and branding integrity.

An interactive exercise will help participants apply insights and develop actionable ideas for their own businesses, whether manufacturing independently or through co-manufacturing partnerships.

Phillips-Donaldson explained the theme selection stems from widespread industry concerns about economic uncertainty affecting supply chains and consumer behavior.

"Companies are looking to operate as efficiently as possible," she said. "Or, they may be facing changes and difficulties that are forcing them to revise their business plans, even cut back — but they want to do so in a way that doesn't harm their businesses or brands long term."

The seminar aims to provide attendees with concrete ideas and options for streamlining operations while identifying cost-saving opportunities through optimized formulations, supply chains, packaging materials and associated expenses.

Additional Petfood Essentials sessions include:

• From nutritionist to operator: AI as your trusted copilot (tentative) – Lynn Verstrepen, director of strategic growth, Bestmix Software, explores how AI can help formulators and operators work together through shared, transparent insights, turning production data into actionable insights that reduce dependency on individuals and stabilize quality across shifts and recipes.
• Addressing formulation quality and risk management in pet food – Annette Lundeen, head of product, Datacor Animal Nutrition, discusses implementing quality control programs to ensure quality and minimize risk using techniques and tools available within formulation software, introducing new technologies that formalize expert knowledge and automate risk assessment.
• How ingredient partnerships power efficiency, innovation and food safety in pet food manufacturing – Craig Grantham, director of business development; Jodi McCarthy, president; and Kyle Wiley, logistics and procurement manager, Pet Food Solutions, explain how collaboration between ingredient suppliers and manufacturers streamlines operations, reduces downtime, lowers inventories, accelerates R&D cycles and improves product quality.
• The nexus of consistency and innovation in pet food manufacturing – Gregory Daniel, strategic industry advisor for pet food/treats and protein, Haskell Company, presents a practical framework for achieving both differentiation and consistency in pet food production, exploring frontier processing techniques and strategic facility design for product innovation.

For more information about Petfood Essentials 2026 or to register for Petfood Forum, visit petfoodforum.com. The full-day seminar provides an opportunity to gain practical insights and strategies for optimizing pet food business operations while networking with industry peers ahead of the main Petfood Forum conference, which runs April 28-29, 2026, in Kansas City, Missouri, U.S.

Petfood Forum and Petfood Essentials show dates are April 27-29, 2026, in Kansas City, Missouri, U.S. To stay informed on the latest event developments, go to PetfoodForumEvents.com. Teams of 3 or more can receive special group discounts. Email [email protected] for your promo code.