Mars Petcare broke ground on its $87.9 million regional innovation center this week in Thompson’s Station. It will be the first regional innovation center for North America, one of five globally. It’s where new pet food recipes will be produced, and researchers and veterinarians will test the foods on dogs and cats that will live there. Mars expects to hire 144 new employees at the innovation center, the 615 people currently employed by Mars and Nutro in Franklin will be relocated during a later phase.
The groundbreaking ceremony included the Governors Bill Haslam, Congresswoman Marsha Blackburn, and Thompsons Station mayor Corey Napier, along with all most of the county commissioners and 300 Mars associates. “Mars has a long history in Tennessee, so it was a natural choice to locate our center here and we are thankful for the continued partnership,” said David Macnair, global vice president of research and development for Mars.
“Pets and their owners in the North American market seek high-quality, cutting edge nutrition, and our new regional innovation center will ensure Mars Petcare and Nutro products deliver on that promise in new and exciting formats.”
The company, which has net annual sales of $30 billion, makes pet food brands such as Nutro, Pedigree, Whiskas, Cesar and Royal Canin.
If any of the employees of Mars would like to search for homes in Thompsons station here is a very user friendly search
Those lucky pets will be living the life of Riley sampling all the food. And what a great boost of employment in Thompson’s Station.