Page 14 - PET worldwide issue 01/2022

News

Construction achieved Fulsome praise for Zoomark
despite delay organisers

Vobra Special Petfoods has been food can start the test phase. The Over 15 000 trade visitors at- were able to make the trip to Bo-
building a new factory in the Dutch expectation is that cat and dog tended the Zoomark International logna, while high infection rates
town Veghel. Due to Covid-19 and biscuits will also be produced in fair in Bologna in November. Of in Germany and eastern Europe
the worldwide scarcity of building this factory in a few months’ time. these, 30 per cent were foreign also reduced the number of trav-
materials, there has been some When the factory is completed, visitors from 82 countries. 450 ellers to Italy from these coun-
delay, but a lot has already been Vobra Special Petfoods will have a exhibitors, 60 per cent of them tries. In these circumstances,
achieved. The warehouse has third production line and an extra from abroad, were in attendance, the Zoomark organisers were
been completed and the first new warehouse. This will increase pro- according to Promopet. The com- extremely satisfied with the out-
machines, comprising the pack- duction capacity by 50 per cent, pany worked with BolognaFiere come of the show, the only inter-
aging machine, extruder and fresh the company states. An additional to organise the show, which was national physical fair for the pet
meat processing machine, have production line may be added to staged in November instead of supplies sector in 2021 and one
been installed. As a result, the pro- the new factory in the future. on the originally planned dates which marked something of a re-
ducer of high-quality dog and cat in May on account of the coro- turn to normality for the sector.
navirus pandemic. The good mood prevailing at
The Zoomark fair held two the three-day show was an indi-
and a half years ago in May cation of just how much exhibi-
2019 attracted 26 000 visitors, tors and visitors have longed for
but only limited comparisons an international event at which
can be made with the latest edi- they could be physically pre-
tion due to the changed situa- sent. Praise has been given to
tion. The continuing pandemic the satisfactory and profes-
was the main reason for the fail- sional organisation of Zoomark
ure to attract visitors to the No- International under coronavirus
vember 2021 show in the same conditions, say the organisers.
numbers as in 2019. Due to the This has been confirmed to PET
restrictions imposed on travel as worldwide by both exhibitors and
a result of Covid-19, only a few visitors.
The new factory will increase production capacity by 50 per cent, Vobra people from the USA and Asia
Special Petfoods states.

Even cats contract Covid

Around four per cent of house cats picked up the infection from their
in Europe contracted the corona- owners.
virus in the spring and summer Specific antibodies were
of 2020, according to a study by detected by the researchers in
a German-Dutch research team a total of 4.4 per cent of all the
led by Albert Osterhaus of the blood samples. The highest pro-
University of Veterinary Medicine portion of cats testing positive
Hannover (TiHo). The team exam- was in Spain and the lowest in
ined 2160 blood samples in all the United Kingdom. In Germany,
from cats in Germany, the United 4.2 per cent of the samples con-
Kingdom, Italy and Spain, coming tained Covid-specific antibodies, Over 15 000 trade visitors attended the Zoomark International fair in
to the conclusion that the felines according to the study. Bologna in last November.

14 PET worldwide 1|2022

PWW2022-01_Buch.indb 14 04.02.2022 09:48:12