Efficient Pet Food & Animal Feed Packaging with Continuous Inkjet & Case Coder Solutions

Pet food and feed producers handle multiple regulations tied to safety, freshness, and ingredient visibility. A date and batch coding printer allows teams to apply the lot numbers, expiration dates, serial data, and other production details required for traceability. Packaging surfaces change across product families, and each one demands codes that stay readable through handling, storage, and transport. KEYENCE continuous inkjet platforms support a consistent print structure on films, foil, rigid containers, and coated materials.

Modern feed operations run long hours, and production speed shapes every decision on the floor. An industrial inkjet printer keeps variable information aligned with that pace. Non-contact inkjet marking is well-suited for this environment because it forms characters while the target remains in motion.

Pouches, cans, chub packs, and bottles often travel on vibration-heavy conveyors, and stable droplet control keeps alphanumeric characters sharp as each product passes the print head. A continuous inkjet (CIJ) printer for animal feed production handles line variation, curved surfaces, and mixed materials without slowing upstream or downstream processes.

Primary and secondary packaging call for different coding approaches. CIJ platforms place production data on flexible and rigid formats at high speed, while case coders, like the CC-1000 Series, take on the outer cases used for bulk shipments, wholesale distribution, and warehouse handling. Combining both in a single workflow simplifies the movement of information from the primary package to the carton. This supports both retail-level traceability and pallet-level visibility. CIJ systems carry most of the workload across pouches, cans, and bags, while the case coder focuses on box printing and large-character markings for corrugated and shrink-wrapped trays.

Clear production and expiration data support product freshness, guide rotation, and keep ingredient tracking aligned across every stage of movement. A stable inkjet coding system places this information on substrates that face varied conditions, including heat from retort processes, cold storage, or abrasion during transport. Non-contact inkjet marking keeps character formation consistent, allowing the printed data to remain visible through each stage of the packaging and shipping process.

A reliable industrial inkjet printer reduces operator tasks and supports high uptime across long production windows. Automated cleaning routines and built-in ink stability checks lessen the amount of hands-on attention a CIJ printer needs. This helps teams maintain print quality during extended runs or environmental variation. A CIJ printer for animal feed production supports these conditions with controlled ink behavior and a sealed print head design to reduce downtime and increase production flow.

Secondary packaging in pet food and animal feed often includes bulk corrugate cases and large shipping cartons. Box printing keeps these containers aligned with lot and batch data used upstream on primary packaging. A case coder places clear, high-resolution characters on corrugate so warehouse teams can scan and sort feed products quickly.

Get in touch to learn about our CIJ & case coder solutions for pet food packaging.