Here at C&D Foods we’re founded on family; it has aways been at the heart of our business. And recently part the C&D family from our site in Valladolid in Spain, has been keeping a passion for pet food in the family more than ever before!

Carla Parra, the young daughter of C&D Foods employees, Carlos Parra and Maria Eugenia Espinilla, was set a challenge to create a brand as part of a homework project. Carla wasted no time in creating ‘Piensos Dakota’, a new pet food brand, named after the family’s beloved pet dog, Dakota.

Carla set out her business plan in a heartwarming video where she talks through the concept, ingredients, and product samples, with attention to detail that even went through to distribution and marketing! She added a snappy commercial, and some fantastic publicity photos, and her Piensos Dakota pet food brand was born!

Stories like this, from our teams around Europe, make us so proud and reaffirm that sense of family that has been the beating heart of our business for more than 50 years. With family comes a sense of responsibility, and a commitment to sustainable growth that has seen our pet food business blossom into one of the largest private label pet food manufacturers in Europe, with more than 1,500 team members across 12 European locations. And, of course, that success means that we are responsible for helping households across Europe provide delicious and nutritious pet food for the canine and feline members of their families too!

So, we’d like to say thank you to Carla for such a formidable school project, and to mum and dad Carlos and Maria for flying the C&D flag so high both at work and at home that they have inspired a new generation of potential pet food industry talent. It is safe to say that our future is looking bright with youngsters like Carla showing such enthusiasm for creating new pet food products, with such a broad understanding of the varied disciplines that go into making a successful pet food. Dakota is a superstar too, of course!

If you love all four-legged friends (yes, we love cats too!) and you’re interested in joining our family working for a growing, sustainable business, all across Europe, then please take a look at our careers pages.