Canina Pharma, Mars, Algiecel and AktivDog Are Adding European Production Capacity Through 2029

Canina Pharma is investing €5.6 million to expand its supplement facility in Hamm-Rhynern, Germany. Mars is putting approximately €85 million into its German sites between 2026 and 2027, with over €18 million directed to its Verden pet food plant. Danish microalgae company Algiecel opened a new production facility in Kalundborg that increases its capacity almost fivefold. Swiss dog food maker AktivDog plans to invest €8 million to €10 million in a new facility in Ocna Sibiului, Romania, with production starting in late 2028 or early 2029.

These are regional plays serving regional demand.

What the investments are funding

Canina Pharma's €5.6 million buys roughly 1,500 square meters of production space on a property near its existing site. Tim Spanke, the company's CEO, told the source that once the new facilities open in fall 2027, production capacity will nearly double. The company said the additional capacity will support growth in its private-label and white-label business and strengthen its ability to serve existing international markets.

Mars' €85 million German investment between 2026 and 2027 includes equipment for Sheba multipack production at Verden, plus €6 million for a pouch packaging line scheduled for completion by the end of 2027. The company said Verden supplies close to 30 markets across Europe and beyond, and that footprint will stay the same. From 2021 through 2025, Mars put €59 million into infrastructure at its German pet food operations.

Algiecel's new reactor in Kalundborg holds 5,500 liters total, with 3,240 liters dedicated to active microalgae cultivation. That compares to 700 liters in the pilot system. The company projects annual biomass output of 12 tonnes starting in 2027, targeting pet food and cosmetics customers. Susanne Palsten Buchardt, Algiecel's CEO, said the facility is where the company demonstrates it can deliver a dependable fish oil substitute at commercial volumes under industrial conditions.

AktivDog's planned facility in Sibiu, Romania, will occupy roughly 4,000 square meters with maximum annual output of about 5,000 tonnes. Yannik Steimer, the company's managing director, told the source that AktivDog makes wet dog food, and a small portion of its Swiss range uses meat varieties obtained from other EU countries because those proteins are not available in Switzerland. The company will manufacture those varieties at the Romanian site for European and Swiss distribution.

Why the framing matters

The 'new European capacity for U.S. brands' angle benefits the companies announcing the expansions, because it makes a regional buildout sound like a global play. It also benefits consultants and trade press that position themselves as connectors between U.S. operators and European suppliers.

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Canina Pharma said the expansion will create opportunities to enter new markets as its business develops, but it named private-label and white-label growth as the driver. Mars said the Verden site will continue supplying the same 30 markets it supplies now. AktivDog chose Romania specifically because the region is home to several suppliers that already serve its Swiss operations, and because the site provides easy access from Switzerland. None of them said they are building capacity to serve North American distribution.

Algiecel is the one exception. The company is producing a fish oil alternative, and if it can scale production, that ingredient could move globally. But 12 tonnes annually from 2027 is early-stage commercial volume, not a supply chain.

Our read

We're watching these buildouts because they show European pet operators see enough regional demand to justify the investment in new capacity through 2029. The companies are naming their own customer bases and their own markets as the reason for the expansion.

For a U.S. buyer or brand operator, the action is not to call Canina Pharma and ask about contract manufacturing slots. The action is to note that these European pet companies are betting on growth in their own regions, and to ask what that means for the category mix and the margin structure you are planning around in 2026 and 2027.

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