Pet Food & Animal Nutrition Manufacturing worked example

Kibble Drying Energy with dryer connected electrical load of 6 kW: a worked example

Here is what the math looks like when conditions slip. We hold every other input steady and drop dryer connected electrical load to 6 kW, then walk the calculation through step by step. Estimate kibble drying energy for pet food and animal nutrition manufacturing using production-ready inputs so teams can budget energy cost, compare equipment settings, or include electricity in the quote.

The inputs for this scenario

  • Dryer connected electrical load: 6 kW (the input this scenario stresses; the baseline uses 12)
  • Dryer runtime for the batch: 8 hr (held at the documented default)
  • Blended electricity rate: 0.12 $ / kWh (held at the documented default)
  • Kibble units dried during runtime: 1,000 units (held at the documented default)

Working through the calculation

  • The calculation starts from the formula this tool documents: Total kibble drying energy cost = kibble drying energy connected load × kibble drying energy runtime × blended electricity rate.
  • Total kibble drying energy cost works out to 5.76 $ / unit at these inputs, and this is the headline figure for the scenario.
  • Kibble drying energy used works out to 48 kWh at these inputs.
  • Energy cost per unit works out to 0.01 $ / piece at these inputs.
  • Hourly kibble drying energy cost works out to 0.72 $ / hr at these inputs.

How this compares with the baseline

  • Against the tool's baseline example, where dryer connected electrical load sits at 12 kW and the headline result is 11.52 $ / unit, this scenario comes in 50% below the baseline at 5.76 $ / unit.
  • The practical read: the gap between this scenario and the baseline is entirely attributable to dryer connected electrical load, so recovering it is worth quantifying in dollars before considering equipment or staffing changes. It uses connected load rather than measured draw, so it assumes the dryer runs near full rated power; gas-fired heat and moisture-load differences between formulas are not captured.

Results at a glance

  • Total kibble drying energy cost: 5.76 $ / unit (headline result)
  • Kibble drying energy used: 48 kWh
  • Energy cost per unit: 0.01 $ / piece
  • Hourly kibble drying energy cost: 0.72 $ / hr

Run it with your numbers

  • To rerun this with your own numbers, open the live Kibble Drying Energy calculator, set dryer connected electrical load to your actual value, and adjust the remaining inputs to match your operation.

Last reviewed 2026-05-12.