Drive for success

"It is the continuous effort we make to achieve excellence that enables us to occupy this leading position worldwide. It encourages us to continue along this path and motivates us to always apply the SPF core values of performance, innovation, proximity, respect and the striving for excellence," explains Jean-Pierre Rivery, president of SPF-Diana.Today the company is present in 17 countries, and aims to continue to invest in projects that bring it physically closer to its partners. SPF-Diana also wants to be closer to the everyday concerns of its customers in order to meet the diverse requirements of animals and pet owners around the world.Continuous improvement is applied at every level of the company to improve products, services and processes. This approach drives the company to always go further, and as a result of these efforts SPF-Diana achieves growth.Programme of excellenceContinuous improvement at the industrial level is yielded by a programme of excellence. All the principles of this programme are deployed in SPF subsidiaries. Taking into account local requirements and constraints, new technologies and processes are set up in all of the company's plants to improve efficiency, effectiveness and flexibility. According to SPF-Diana, employee and product safety always come first. The excellence programme is also applied to the palatant food safety strategy, from risk analysis to global quality management policy. The programme involves suppliers from the very beginning and imposes the same requirements. Special attention is also given to energy expenditure and the global sustainability of equipment, while water use is optimised as far as possible. The most innovative systems are implemented for waste and odour treatment. All these initiatives underline SPF's value of "respect"- not only for people and animals, but also for the environment. That's why SPF was the first company in its business to undergo a complete carbon footprint audit, in preparation for ISO 26000 certification.In research and development, continuous improvement serves innovation and reinforces SPF's position as an expert in palatability. The development of palatants is based on mastering raw materials, ingredients and processes. The company's engineers are constantly looking for breakthrough technologies to obtain targeted aromatic compositions. As a consequence, continuous improvement also applies to analytical methods and aroma analysis tools.To understand the interactions and…