SOUTH DAKOTA COMPANY AWARDED CERTIFICATION AND ANNOUNCES NEW PRODUCT FOR PET FOOD INDUSTRY

Houdek (formerly Prairie AquaTech) is South Dakota's first Safe Quality Food (SQF) certified pet food ingredient facility, launching new product Protéger

SIOUX FALLS, S.D., Feb. 23, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- Houdek announces their manufacturing facility in Volga, SD has been certified by the Safe Quality Food (SQF) program.  This certification means that the facility has met critical safety and quality criteria required to manufacture ingredients for pet diets.  This is the only SQF certified pet food ingredient facility in the State of South Dakota.

The company's first ingredient to be marketed under its SQF certification is Protéger, a fermented plant-based protein ingredient specifically manufactured for the pet food industry using the company's patented fermentation process.  

Over the past thirty years, veterinarians, nutritionists, pet food manufacturers, and pet owners have grown in their understanding of the value of plant-based protein. Fermented plant-based protein ingredients have an environmentally friendly profile and are ideal for specialized diets that address certain pet health conditions. 

Mark Luecke, Houdek's co-founder and CEO stated, "Our team's achievement of SQF certification and our launch of Protéger in the global pet food market go hand in hand.  This is an important next step in the planned growth of the company, bringing the positive impact that we have delivered to the global aquaculture industry to the global pet food industry."

"The SQF program is an incredibly rigorous third-party verification standard, and we were glad to see that Houdek (Prairie AquaTech) understands the importance of participating in a voluntary program like this. As the first South Dakota pet food ingredient facility to achieve this certification, it is something they can be proud of while allowing them to differentiate themselves in the marketplace," said Matt Jones, VP of Operations for Validus, a division of Where Food Comes From, Inc.

The Safe Quality Food (SQF) Program is a rigorous and credible food safety and quality program that is recognized by retailers, brand owners, and food service providers world-wide. Recognized by the Global Food Safety Initiative (GFSI), the SQF family of food safety and quality codes are designed to meet industry, customer, and regulatory requirements for all sectors of the food supply chain – from the farm all the way to the retail stores.

SOURCE Houdek