Mars has officially opened a $112.6 million wet pet food facility in Wodonga, Victoria, expanding its Australian manufacturing footprint and increasing local production capacity for its cat food brands.
The new facility is dedicated to producing wet cat food pouches and is expected to manufacture around 290 million pouches each year for brands. According to the company, the expansion means around 90 per cent of Mars Petcare products sold across Australia and New Zealand will be manufactured locally.
The investment is expected to create more than 67 direct jobs and over 100 indirect positions, bringing Mars’ workforce in Wodonga to almost 500 employees.
The opening follows Mars’ previously announced $200 million investment in Australian manufacturing through to 2027. Since 2020, the company says it has invested more than $450 million in its Australian operations to expand production capacity, modernise facilities and improve manufacturing efficiency.
Demand for wet cat food continues to grow in Australia, with Mars citing an estimated 5.3 million pet cats living in around one third of Australian households.
Managing director and general manager Mars Petcare Australia and New Zealand, Melodie Nye, said the investment reflects the company’s long term commitment to Australian manufacturing and the Wodonga community.
“Mars has been part of the Wodonga community since 1967, and this new facility is the next chapter in that story. We’re proud to keep investing here – in local jobs, in Australian manufacturing, and in the people who make this place what it is,” said Nye.
The Victorian government, through Regional Development Victoria, supported development of the facility.
“Across regional Victoria, we’re helping businesses like Mars Petcare to expand their operations, strengthening our supply chains and continuing to develop places like Wodonga as manufacturing powerhouses,” said minister for regional development Michaela Settle.
“We’re proud to have supported this expansion, which has created local jobs and will support significant productivity growth for the company.”
The new production line incorporates automated manufacturing technologies, including autonomous mobile robots, automated packaging systems, a next generation cooking system and AI enabled planning tools designed to improve production efficiency and operational flexibility.
The Wodonga site also features two renewable energy projects designed to reduce reliance on natural gas. A concentrated solar thermal system, jointly funded by Mars and the Australian Renewable Energy Agency, is expected to supply more than half of the site’s annual process heat requirements once operational. The site also includes a commercial scale electric thermal energy storage system that uses renewable electricity to generate and store heat, with Mars reporting it has already reduced gas consumption by around 20 per cent.
Mars operates seven manufacturing facilities and two corporate offices across Australia, employing around 2,400 people.
