County corners cat litter market

HOHHOT — In recent years, an increasing number of Chinese pet enthusiasts have chosen to raise cats. To support the trend, some companies in a county in northern China have found their niche in cat litter production.

In a laboratory, Wang Xiaoli and his colleagues have been developing low-dust mineral and lightweight cat litter using bentonite, an absorbent clay. In their workshop, they can produce millet-sized litter by inputting the mineral ore into a green production line, where it undergoes a series of automatic manufacturing processes.

Such a scene offers a glimpse of the research and production of Chifeng Menghong New Materials Co, a cat litter producer based in Ningcheng county, Inner Mongolia autonomous region. "We introduced new technology and functional materials to increase bentonite litter's clumping and odor absorption function so that cats can live healthily in a low-dust environment," said Wang, a technician at the company.