As petfood processors face rising demands for premium texture, shape, and appearance — while working with increasingly variable raw materials — FAM STUMABO’s Yuran Hytec 300, CMD.2, and Volantis deliver precision, consistency, and flexibility across a full range of applications.
As premiumisation reshapes the pet food market, processors face rising expectations around texture, appearance, and product consistency. FAM STUMABO’s Yuran Hytec 300 belt-fed dicer, CMD.2 drum dicer, and Volantis™ V-belt slicer rise to the challenge, enabling manufacturers to maintain precise cuts, operational efficiency, and repeatable quality across diverse petfood formats.
Processors must manage highly variable raw materials while maintaining hygiene, yield, and throughput. Organ meats, poultry trims, fish, and alternative proteins differ in fat content, moisture, structure, and temperature from batch to batch, creating challenges that extend beyond simple size reduction.
“Pet owners increasingly judge quality by what they see in the bowl: defined meat chunks, clean dice, natural shreds, and uniform inclusions in gravy or freeze-dried formats,” explains Paul Krechel, Executive Vice President, North America. “Visual integrity and texture influence brand perception as strongly as formulation claims. Manufacturers must deliver a hand-crafted look at an industrial scale, often across varying temperatures and protein types. Cutting has therefore become a decisive quality control point.”
Where cutting determines product quality
Appearance and texture influence visual appeal, portion accuracy, and downstream efficiency. Petfood cutting often involves extreme conditions: frozen organs at sub-zero temperatures, hot extruded blends for slurry, sticky high-fat materials, and dense dried treats. The same line may require clean dice, defined chunks, and precise transverse slices – all of which demand equipment that robustly manages temperature, texture, and product shape while safeguarding hygiene and operator safety.
For example, diced inclusions in canned or slurry-style products must remain within strict size limits — often between 6 and 12 mm — while freeze-dried cubes must retain their structure during drying.
Different applications demand distinct cutting principles: frozen organs require drum dicers; shredded or extruded inclusions benefit from belt-fed cutters; jerky-style treats need precise slicing. Matching the right cutting principle to the product condition is therefore essential for consistent cut quality and operational reliability.
“Petfood processing rarely deals with uniform raw materials,” says Paul Krechel. “Each condition requires a specific cutting principle and controlled handling.”
FAM STUMABO’s trio of cutting machines addresses these needs by applying complementary cutting principles: CMD.2 handles frozen organs and high-fat ingredients, producing clean dice without compressing the product; Yuran Hytec 300 manages chilled, cooked, or extruded proteins, delivering diced, chunked, and pulled-look textures with fast changeovers; Volantis ensures precise transverse slicing of treats and sticks, preserving alignment and cut integrity. Together, the three machines support a full range of formats while maintaining operational efficiency.
A recent project with a European petfood processor illustrates this flexibility. By independently adjusting tool and belt speeds on the Yuran Hytec 300, the processor could produce a wide range of particle structures with a single set of tools.
“The biggest improvement has been flexibility without sacrificing cut quality,” explains Sven Boen, Senior Sales Manager Europe at FAM STUMABO. “With the Yuran Hytec 300, the customer can produce the full range of cuts — from very coarse down to very fine — using just one set of tools. By independently adjusting tool and belt speeds, processors can achieve the desired structure while maintaining strict control over particle size. That’s especially important in cat food, where we can reliably achieve that hand-cut or pulled look while still controlling particle size within strict specifications.”
Efficiency without compromise
Precision cutting drives product quality, but efficiency keeps production competitive. Petfood manufacturers must manage SKU proliferation while maintaining throughput and minimizing downtime.
FAM STUMABO machines are designed for ease of operation: quick tool changes, flexible parameters, and intuitive controls enable rapid transitions between formats and support efficient management of expanding product portfolios. At the same time, heavy-duty frozen applications – down to -7°C (19.4°F) – require robust equipment such as the CMD.2 dicer. Beyond equipment, FAM STUMABO collaborates with customers to optimize the cutting process from upstream preparation to downstream packaging.
This performance is reinforced by FAM STUMABO’s in-house blade development and manufacturing. Blade thickness, edge profile, and cutting geometry are carefully matched to the product’s temperature, structure, and fat content, helping processors maintain clean cuts, reduce fines, and optimise yield across a wide range of petfood applications.
“We replicated the customer’s product in our lab down to the smallest detail — not only the end quality, but also our exact preparation steps,” recalls Sven Boen. “What really made the difference for the customer was how open we were to thorough testing and to thinking about solutions together – not only for the cutting itself, but also to optimize the complete line upstream and downstream of the cutter. In the end, FAM STUMABO’s technical support and solution-focused mindset convinced the customer not just about the machine, but also about a long-term partnership. That collaborative approach is what we mean when we say: ‘Together we cut your product to perfection.’”
A technology-driven partner for long-term success
FAM STUMABO supports petfood manufacturers as a technology-driven partner at every stage – from machine selection and configuration to testing and ongoing technical support. “Processors want to focus on developing and growing their product ranges. That’s exactly what our solution enables: reliable results, predictable operation, and fewer headaches — helping customers deliver consistent product appearance and a professional, premium image,” Paul Krechel concludes.
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