Saturn Petcare Makes Vigo County Move Official

Saturn Petcare made its Vigo County plans official last month. (photo courtesy of the IEDC)

Germany-based Saturn Petcare Inc. has officially announced plans to establish its first U.S. operations in Vigo County. The Indiana Economic Development Corp. says the pet food manufacturer will invest more than $38 million to purchase, renovate and equip a more than 350,000-square-foot facility in the Vigo County Industrial Park II and create up to 200 jobs by 2024.

The facility will initially house production of wet pet food for cats and dogs. Production is slated to begin in June 2020 and Saturn plans to begin the hiring process for management and production positions around that time. 

"Over five years ago, Saturn Petcare started looking for sites throughout the U.S. to launch our first facility outside of Europe," said Hubert Schiermeier, chief executive officer of Saturn Petcare. "After exceeding requirements like having a strong infrastructure and being in close proximity to our customer base, and with tremendous support and collaboration at the state and local levels, it was clear that Vigo County was the right location for our expansion into the U.S."

Saturn says, with the expansion, it plans to enhance its customer base in the U.S., including specialty stores, supermarkets and discount stores. The company had previously planned to locate in the former Kellogg’s building in Seelyville, though plans changed after both companies failed to come to a purchase agreement. 

The IEDC has offered Saturn Petcare up to nearly $1.4 million in conditional tax credits and up to $100,000 in training grants, which the company will not be eligible to claim until Hoosier workers are hired. The IEDC has also offered up to nearly $2 million in conditional tax credits through the Industrial Recovery Tax Credit program, which provides incentives to invest in former industrial sites.