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Small Dog Wonders Bakery, makers of the Bistro Bites treats for small dogs, announced that it was able to support a number of animal-related charities in 2012, the company's first year in business. The company aims to raise awareness for issues such as pet obesity, creating healthy lifestyles for dogs, animal rescue, pet adoption, and spay and neutering.
Animal organizations that Small Wonders Bakery worked with include Peggy Adams Animal Rescue League in Palm Beach County, Florida, USA, and the Fairfax County Animal Shelter in Virginia, USA, which both provide shelter for lost, homeless and unwanted animals, as well as low cost spay/neuter and other medical care. Lost Dog Rescue Foundation of Virginia and Bichon Frise Rescue of Maryland, USA, both rescue, rehabilitate, shelter, and find homes for unwanted and abused animals, and were also among groups aided by Small Dog Wonders Bakery. Additionally, the company worked with Kibblez of Love, a group that helps struggling families in Florida feed their pets, and the Humane Society of the United States.
Colgate-Palmolive Company, manufacturer of the Hill's Science Diet pet food brand, has been losing market share to competitors as consumers are increasingly choosing pet foods that more closely resemble their own foods.
The company brings in about 13 percent of a total US$17 billion in sales from the Hill's pet food division; however, it has been losing market share to smaller pet food companies that manufacture natural pet foods or premium pet foods with high-quality ingredients.
In an effort to compete, Hill's introduced the Science Diet Nature's Best line, which included ingredients like lamb, brewers rice, soybean meal and apples. But, "the consumer had a disconnect with this idea of Science Diet and a naturals product," said Ian Cook, Colgate CEO. The company also recently reformulated its Science Diet line to no longer include chicken by-products and feature a more prominent listing of ingredients.
Although Colgate posted higher fourth-quarter results overall, the Hill's pet food division's sales fell 1 percent and operating profit fell 2 percent. The company plans to launch a new brand of pet food in March, which will contain ingredients such as chicken, salmon, fruits and vegetables, with no corn, wheat or soy.
Dr. Tim’s announced it added three distributors that will sell the company's pet food to retailers throughout the United States.
K& W Distribution, located in Clyde, Ohio, USA, will cover distribution in the USA states of: Ohio, Michigan, Indiana, Pennsylvania, Kentucky and West Virginia. Zeigler's Distribution, based in Lebanon, Pennsylvania, USA, will service the USA states of: eastern Pennsylvania, Maryland, Delaware, New Jersey, Virginia and eastern West Virginia. Topaz Natural Pet Products LLC, located in Denver, Colorado, USA, will cover the state of Colorado.
Petsupermarket.co.uk , an online retailer, recorded its busiest ever month following the launch of its Milburns brand of pet products.
Although this is the first time the retailer has marketed its own brand, Milburns petfood already sold out four times and sold four metric tons in its first month.
"This is the first time we have developed our own brand range, and we intend on offering pet owners an ever expanding range with a promise that our prices will stay frozen," the company said.
The online retailer's sales are currently at £7 million (US$9.1 million) and are expected to rise to £8.4 million (US$10.9 million) in 2011, according to the company.
Stella & Chewy’s will sponsor a series of movie screenings in Los Angeles, USA, and New York, USA, to promote the animated feature length film, "My Dog Tulip."
This series of private screenings will be held during the first two weeks of December for members of the Hollywood Foreign Press Association and Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences to help the film get nominated for both a Golden Globe Award and an Academy Award. The film is based on J.R. Ackerley’s best-selling memoir of the same name and features the voices of Christopher Plummer, Lynn Redgrave and Isabella Rossellini. More than 60,000 watercolor-like drawings tell the tale of the relationship between Ackerley and his adopted dog, Tulip.
“Being an independent, underdog film producer – like a small, independent petfood maker – isn’t easy. When you’re running with the big dogs, you need all the help you can get. So we’re doing our part to help ‘Tulip’ succeed against the larger studio campaigns. It was a natural fit,” said Marie Moody, founder and president of Stella & Chewy's. “We hope that our unprecedented support will help propel this wonderful story to an Oscar nomination. I just love the film and I’m sure all passionate animal lovers, including Academy members, will feel the same way.”
Pricing strategies vary among market leaders in the petfood segments of South Korea, Taiwan and Thailand, according to a Euromonitor report.
In South Korea, the premium dry dog food segment is highly competitive, with four main companies dominating the market share. In 2009, Colgate-Palmolive’s Hill’s Science Diet, Procter & Gamble’s Eukanuba and Nestle Purina's Pro Plan held market shares of 19%, 18% and 17.5%, respectively. Premium brands like Hill’s Science Diet are not usually sold in hypermarkets or discount stores where price competition is usually more intense, but are instead marketed through veterinary clinics, pet shops and the Internet.
The petfood market in Taiwan is dominated by Hill’s Science Diet, who held 28.3% of the market share in 2009. Little variation in price exists here, as most brands in the premium dry segment were priced around NT$150/kg (US$4.66/kg) in May 2010. The relative uniformity of pricing in this segment suggests that manufacturers do not think they can gain significantly more of the market share by undercutting prices of other brands.
A difference in Thailand's petfood market is that price remains an important consideration for middle-class consumers who are driving growth in this segment by trading up to premium foods. Hill's Science Diet replaced Eukanunba as the dominating brand over the past decade, partially due to its prices that are set about 13% lower than Eukanuba's. Veterinary clinics are a major distribution channel in this segment and accounted for 27.8% of value sales in the dry dog food marketplace in 2009.
A treat product from Fish4Dogs was voted the best new product for 2009 by the Pet Product Retail Association (PPRA).
Founder Jill Angell saw a market niche to include healthy fish products into the petfood market with Star Treats. Versions of the treats feature taurine, Omega 3 and salmon oil.
WellPet Foundation, the charitable arm of the Wellness Natural Pet Food, donated nearly 17 tons of dog food and snacks to the 800 dogs currently residing at the DAWGS N Texas animal shelter. The shelter is an animal wellness group and sanctuary based in Dalhart, Texas, USA, whose primary goal is to find loving and safe homes for the animals in its care.
Golden Acres Pet Food Partners (based in Preston, England, UK) and Verm-X (Somerset, England, UK) have joined hands to provide petfood companies the opportunity to add natural internal parasite control to their range of petfoods or treats, according to a news report.
Verm-X reportedly is a mix of 100% herbal and natural ingredients that improves the animal’s gut and digestive system. It can be added to the feed of dogs, cats, ferrets and small animals. The formulation, classified as a complementary feeding material, can be bought without a prescription.
Royal Canin has launched Pug 25, which is formulated exclusively for Pugs over 10 months of age, according to a news report.
The product is easy for Pugs to grasp and chew, Royal Canin says, and has balanced protein and fat content to help maintain a healthy body weight. It also has nutrients that limit irritation in the Pugs’ loose, folded skin, according to the company.
Pug 25, along with Royal Canin's other breed-specific diets, is "Intelligent Nutrition for the Purebred Dog," the company says. It is available in 2.5 and 10 lb. bags at pet specialty retailers.
According to examiner.com, Web sites are offering information on kosher, halal, Asian and specialty food products for humans or pets. For example, Zabihah.com is an ethnic guide to the USA Muslim food market. The site claims to be the world's largest guide to Halal restaurants and products.
Tom's of Maine offers, with product certification, both Halal and Kosher foods. All Tom’s of Maine products carry the Halal endorsement, which certifies they are made in accordance with Islamic guidelines under the supervision of the Islamic Food and Nutrition Council of America, according to the company.
Kosher Pets claims to be the only patented dog food endorsed for use in a kosher home. The food is made with human-grade ingredients such as liver, vegetables, chicken and olive oil.
Alice, an 8-year-old domestic cat, was given up because her owners could not combat the effects of the dangerous 24 pounds she had become, according to a news report. She received the much-needed care at the Rhode Island Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (RISPCA).
The RISPCA veterinary health care team members, along with Amy Karls, DVM, practice development veterinarian at Hill's Pet Nutrition Inc., helped Alice get on a successful weight management regimen. Her caloric intake was restricted, and she was fed Hill's Prescription Diet m/d Feline petfood. Now she is down to 14 pounds and has been adopted.
Greenopia, an online directory for everything green, recently released its independent ratings of 30 popular petfood brands sold in the USA.
The only brands receiving the coveted Greenopia Four-Green-Leaf Award were Karma of Natura Pet Products and Raw Advantage.
Greenopia collected data from manufacturers and independent sources about each brand's ingredients, packaging, sustainability reporting, supply chain, animal testing policies and green building design.
Companies were given additional points for their adoption of environmental initiatives. One-third of the brands evaluated earned zero-leaf ratings, revealing them to be below Greenopia's minimum green threshold.
"Sometimes it is hard to know which brands are safest and healthiest for your pet," said Gay Browne, Greenopia's founder and CEO. "We've combined analysis of sustainability issues and health considerations to make it clear to our readers which products are better for the environment and their pets."
HBH Pet Products announced the release of its new product, No Grainers dog biscuits and treats, which is a 100% grain-free, protein-infused alternative to treats with corn and wheat fillers.
“Some dogs have trouble processing foods that are grain-based, which can wreak havoc on their systems,” said Colette Dahl, manager of new product development at HBH Pet Products. “Because No Grainers understands the importance of having protein as a staple in a dog’s diet, we developed these … treats.”
Vegan-based diets for pets are gaining in popularity as some vegan owners are deciding that they want their pets to adopt a similar diet to their own. Mainstream public opinion, including other vegans, hasn't offered much support, given the fact that dogs are omnivores and cats are carnivores: some require nutrients not found in human diets, vegan or otherwise.
Despite this fact, some petfood companies have made their niche selling vegan petfood, such as the Minnesota-based, Evolution and Canada-based, Medi-Cal Royal Canine.
Some veterinarians are skeptical of the idea, pointing to the fact that owners and their pets are completely different species; each requiring their own specialized diet and nutrition.
Mars International India, manufacturer and marketer of Pedigree, is seeking to tap niche areas of the petfood market in India by introducing new products, according to an article on www.mydigitalfc.com. The company has introduced vegetarian dog food, keeping in mind the sensitivities of vegetarian pet owners, and will soon launch snacks and treats as well as specialized food for older dogs.
The US$20 million market in the country for petfoods is growing rapidly and is set to evolve into a size of US$74 million by 2012, the company said.
“The 100% vegetarian food is eyeing mainly the Tamil Nadu and Gujarat markets. A city such as Chennai, with a pet dog population of [100,000], has a market potential of US$12 million. At least 30% of pet owners in the city prefer vegetarian food for their animals,” said Ajay Iyer, regional sales manager, south and east of Mars International India.
Mars has produced a vegetarian variant with the same nutritional and calorie levels as that of the non-vegetarian one. The company is also introducing specialized food for dogs of age seven and above.
Retail stores contribute 60% of the sales, with the rest coming through other distribution channels such as veterinary specialists, breeders and institutions.
