As a result of 2023’s Export Sorghum conference programming focused on sorghum ingredient extrusion for pet food, Grupo Bios (Contegral), the largest pet food producer in Colombia, approached the U.S. Grains Council (USGC) and United Sorghum Checkoff Program (USCP) to request a trial identifying potential applications for sorghum inclusion in its products. Growing demand across Latin America (LTA) for high quality pet food derived from alternative “ancient grains” lend promise to U.S. sorghum’s future as a staple ingredient in a rapidly expanding and increasingly lucrative industry.

USGC in conjunction with USCP shipped five containers containing 120 metric tons (MT) of number one U.S. sorghum to the Port of Buenaventura in January 2024. The sorghum will be tested in house by Grupo Bios to secure the following data:

1. Ingredient analysis: Complete bromatological analysis including protein, fat, fiber, ssh, calcium, phosphorus and moisture content.
2. Manufacturing requirements: Analysis of MT per hour production efficiency, amperage, flow rate and steam pressure.
3. Pellet structure: Density, buoyancy, hardness, crunchiness and starch gelatinization index.
4. Product performance: Palatability, dry matter digestibility, protein digestibility and fecal matter score.

The criteria sampled above will be compared to a traditional control formulation of LTA-origin corn. The sorghum containing kibble products manufactured for the trial will be tested at inclusion rates of five, 10 and 15 percent. While the trial completion timeline is still pending, the Council looks forward to sharing the findings of this study with pet food producers across the region upon its conclusion.