Conference Session: Making Private Label Pet food

Originally presented at Petfood Forum 2010, Serge Boutet of Mondou Ltd., discusses how over the past decade, large pet retailers have developed their own pet food brands.

This one-hour session provides participants with information on how these retailer brands are unique, and their ability to compete nutritionally and economically with national brands. Boutet also covers new product concepts, feeding trials and other work to develop such a brand.

For $49.99, participants receive:

• Unlimited online access (log on any time – 24 hours a day –to view the session)
• Certificate of completion
• About the Presenter
  
  Born in Montreal, Canada, Serge Boutet, a McGill University graduate, is an agronomist expert in animal nutrition for Mondou Ltd. Through his 25 years career, including the last 20 in the pet food industry, he acquired his expertise through operations management, quality control, export, pet foods / animal feed formulation and sales as well as technical training / teaching.

Pet owners spoil pets with treats, accessories, survey finds

Pet owners spoil their pets in a variety of ways, treating them as a human member of the family, according to a survey of pet-owning households by Pet360.
Nearly all (99.4 percent) of pet owners surveyed said they consider their pet to be a part of the family. In fact, 42.5 percent of respondents said they would not go on a vacation if they could not bring their pet with, and three in four respondents said they celebrate their pet's birth day or day of adoption.
The survey also found that owners spoil their pets with treats, as three in four surveyed said they have shared a popsicle or ice cream cone with their pet. More than 99 percent of those surveyed also said their pet shares the bed at night with a human family member.
Additional results of the survey include: 40.3 percent of respondents admitted to sneaking their pet into a store or public area; 99.4 percent of respondents said they talk or sing to their pet; more than 70 percent said their pet is or will be provided for in their last will; and 90 percent of respondents said they would spend US$100 on a cat or dog bed, while a small percentage even said they would spend US$1,000 on a diamond-studded pet collar. 

Blackwood Pet Food redesigns cat food packaging

Design agency Ideas that Kick recently redesigned packaging for Blackwood Pet Food’s full line of superpremium cat foods.
The new cat food packaging design highlights key nutritional information for each cat food recipe in the front and slightly off-center on each bag, making it easier for pet owners to notice on first glance.
“Our nutrition-based bag fronts make it easy for busy store clerks to recommend Blackwood foods to pet owners,” says Mary Kemp, Ideas that Kick, president and brand strategist. “That’s important with pet owners becoming more concerned about pet nutrition.”
The packaging design concept was applied to Blackwood's dog food recipes earlier in the year. “Blackwood really stands out on store shelves. Our packaging really is a rock-star touchpoint for our brand," says Matt Golladay, Blackwood Pet Food, vice president.

Zoomark International confirms 60 percent of registrants from abroad

Zoomark International, an exhibition of pet products and accessories, has announced that registration so far indicates that more than 60 percent of companies registered are coming from abroad.
Registrants for the pet products show, which takes place in Italy, are predominately from Great Britain, the US, Canada, Brazil and China. The show also says it has seen an increase in companies registering to exhibit individually after previously exhibiting at a group area.
Zoomark International will take place May 9-12, in Bologna, Italy. 

Canine Health Foundation seeks applicants for dog bloat grant

The American Kennel Club’s Canine Health Foundation is seeking applications from researchers interested in gastrointestinal physiology for US$250,000 grants to promote research into fatal bloat condition in dogs.
Researchers interested in seeking funding from the grant must submit a letter of intent by March 18. The Foundation will also provide continuing education for veterinarians showing surgical procedures used for prevention during spay and neuter.
“Bloat is devastating for dog owners when it occurs. Through this major funding effort, researchers, for the first time, will have the resources they need to work towards establishing the causes and pre-dispositions for bloat,” says Dr. Shila Nordone, chief scientific officer of Canine Health Foundation. “Once we understand why bloat occurs, we will have better treatment options and possibly be able to prevent the syndrome from occurring in the first place.”
In addition to addressing dog bloat with research grants, the Canine Health Foundation will host a free webinar in mid-2013 to educate dog owners about bloat, as well as its possible causes, susceptible breeds, symptoms, medical intervention and an explanation of research needed on the condition. 

Motion Industries releases new, online energy savings video

Motion Industries, a distributor of industrial maintenance, repair and operation replacement parts to the pet industry, released its first video for 2013 on its “MiHow2” channel, the product/application solutions series. Power and automation technologies provider ABB-Baldor is the featured Motion Industries supplier in the latest video release entitled, How to Save Energy by Controlling Water Flow & Water Pressure.
The instructive video series’ goal is to share practical industrial applications that viewers can adapt in their own facilities. Each MiHow2 video was filmed in a workshop setting, featuring Motion Industries' host with a guest from an industrial manufacturer demonstrating a product or application.
“Energy savings is and will continue to be a hot topic for industry,” said Randy Breaux, Motion Industries’ senior vice president of marketing, product management and strategic planning. “More and more facilities are becoming serious about energy efficiency and finding different ways to save money in their operations. We were thrilled to have experts from ABB-Baldor demonstrate how using a variable frequency drive can result in a lot of real dollar savings.”

Small animal, pet bird ownership on rise in US, report finds

Ownership of small animals, birds and fish as pets is on the rise in the US, according to a new report from market research firm Packaged Facts, which suggests pet industry retailers may benefit from this rebound.
The most popular small animal in the US is rabbits; in 2012, 4.2 million rabbits lived in US households. The report noted that in 2010, 39 percent of small-animal owners said they owned a rabbit, compared to 25 percent for hamsters and 24 percent for guinea pigs.
The report also found that 7.2 million households own a total of 84.3 million fish in 2012, accounting for 73 percent of the pet population, excluding dogs and cats. The number of fish-owning households in 2012 rose by about 100,000 from 2011.
The number of bird-owning households in 2012 totaled 4.6 million. Although this number was down from the 5.8 million households that owned a bird in 2008, bird ownership is up 24 percent since 2010 when just 3.7 million households owned birds. Moreover, 41 percent of bird owners said they considered their bird to be a member of the family.
A decline in pet ownership was seen in the reptile segment. In 2012, 1.8 million households owned 3.9 million reptiles, down from 2.3 million households in 2008. The report noted the decline may be linked to the higher cost of caring for reptiles, such as lizards and iguanas.
“These pet owners represent big business for the pet industry,” the report's co-authors, Robert Brown and Ruth Washton, noted. “They groom and board their birds, buy toys for their iguanas, purchase medications for their turtles, take their gerbils to the vet, decorate their fish tanks and, of course, buy food for all of the tens of millions of pets that they own besides their cats and dogs."