Pet Food Industry Fuels Wynstone Family:

For Jason Beyer of Wynstone, a four-legged furry beauty named Rose literally sits in the window sill, behind his desk, keeping a close eye on the daily operations at MARS Petcare US in North Sioux City.

Rose, a year and a half old female cat who was rescued from an animal shelter in Sioux Falls, struck the jackpot when she moved to the local pet food production facility recently.

"We just rescued that cat actually, about 2 months ago. She pretty much runs the show around here half the time. She enjoys coming in my office and sitting in that window," Beyer commented.

But, Rose takes a backseat to the other woman in Beyer's life, his wife, Cindy. Together they are raising three boys and two dogs at their home in Wynstone.

The Beyer's two oldest children, Gavin,10 and Duke,7, both attend Dakota Valley and enjoy playing football. Their youngest son, Cole, who is only 8 months old, has to wait a few years before he can toss around the football with his big brothers.

The family relocated to the area from Kansas a little over a year and a half ago for Beyer's career.

"I find it enjoyable living in North Sioux City with my family," Beyer commented on his recent relocation.

But on long holiday weekends, the Beyer family still find themselves making the 5 hour road trip back to Kansas to visit friends, family and pursue their passion of boating and camping.

Beyer graduated from Emporia State University with a BA in Management before working 5 years on the production floor at IBP in Emporia, Kansas.

After IBP, Beyer moved on to work as the Director of Operations at Menu Foods, also in Emporia. Eventually, Beyer and his family were transferred to the Menu Foods facility in North Sioux City where he held the title Vice President of Operations.

In October of 2007, the Menu Foods building in North Sioux City was purchased by MARS Petcare US, a completely unaffiliated entity. Although the location of his office didn't change, Beyer literally changed jobs overnight. He is now the Site Manger for MARS Petcare US.

"I am responsible for everybody at the site, whether it be quality control, maintenance, folks on the production floor or supervision," Beyer explained. "I've got a hand in a little bit of everything, and I'm responsible for it all."

The North Sioux City facility produces Pedigree and Whiska's wet can pet foods. The products produced locally are also sold locally in grocery stores, at mass merchandisers, specialty pet stores as well as farm supply stores.

"Since I've gotten into it, I've really enjoyed it," Beyer explained of his career with MARS Petcare US. "It's very interesting finding out what's in certain formulas, what formulas are good for my animals. You pick up a lot of good knowledge that way."

And, the Beyer's two English Pointer dogs, Blue and Deuce, are glad their dad in charge of the production of their pet food.

"That's all I'm feeding right now, is Pedigree, to my animals. And they're good, healthy dogs," Beyer noted.

The North Sioux City facility employs over 100 associates, and Beyer makes it a point to get out of the office and visit with them.

"I enjoy spending time out on the floor. I enjoy spending time up in our warehouse, getting out and mingling with the folks," Beyer explained. "Getting out and intermingling with people will make sure that they're engaged with the business and that's basically going to ensure that you have a good quality product, good customer service."

And, Beyer is proud of the work environment at the local MARS Petcare US facility. One of the rewarding aspects of his position is knowing the production facility he oversees is a safe environment for the associates.

"People can feel safe working for MARS. There is some security working for a company the size of MARS, being privately held," Beyer said. "There's just more job security there."

Beyer also feels the wages and benefits are extremely fair for this region.

And this summer, the North Sioux City plant will become involved in the Mars Volunteer Program, or MVP.

The week of June 2-6, MARS associates across the globe will engage in activities in their communities to address pet welfare, environmental concerns, youth enrichment and hunger relief.

Locally, over 40 volunteers from MARS Petcare US will spend the week cleaning up litter in North Sioux City and help Boys and Girls Home and Family Services, Inc. with cleaning, painting and various tasks.

The MARS volunteers will also spend time at the Siouxland Humane Society socializing the animals, cleaning pens and helping complete their "to do lists."

During the week, the associates are also holding a food drive to collect donations for the Foodbank of Sioux City. Once the items are donated, the volunteers will help the foodbank organize their facility, and present them with a matching donation provided by the MARS corporate office.

MARS has made it a point to reach out into the pet loving community to help facilitate proper pet care, including finding homes for shelter pets, with their foundation.

The Pedigree Adoption Drive Foundation is popularly known for their "Dogs Rule" campaign and the touching television commercial featuring "Echo" the shelter dog, whom by the way was adopted.

Although the local MARS Petcare US facility focuses on the production of wet can pet foods, it is just one facet of the global MARS company.

There are three main divisions to MARS, including MARS Petcare US, MARS Snack Food US and MARS Food US.

So, yes, MARS makes candy bars, but not in North Sioux City.

***This article was originally published in the North Sioux City / Dakota Dunes Times by Sedgwick Publishing.***