A healthy treat is a treat for both pets and their humans, and it's what ChangeTer, a new liquid cat treat from Thai Union, claims to be all about.
ChangeTer differentiates itself from other cat treats in the market by guaranteeing that it is easy on a cat's kidneys. Without offering specifics, Thai Union claims ChangeTer is formulated by a nutritionist to make it tasty and highly nutritious and, most importantly, cat kidney-friendly.
About kidney disease in cats
Pichitchai Wonpiya, president of Global PetCare, Thai Union Group PCL, said studies show that kidney disease is one of the leading causes of death in cats. In particular, chronic kidney disease (CKD) is the number one cause of death for cats over five years old and affects 30–40% of all cats over the age of 10. CKD is said to be a highly complex disease that is usually difficult to diagnose early, making treatment challenging. Wonpiya said they developed ChangeTer to be kidney-safe to put cat owners at ease.
Thai Union’s expansion into pet food
ChangeTer is an offshoot of Thai Union's commitment to invest more in the pet food sector to add more value to its by-products from seafood processing. In November 2020, Thai Union reported that its sales of seafood products for pets helped increase the company's net sales total at the end of September 2020 by 9.3% to Thailand Baht (THB) 34.78 billion (US$1.16 billion) year-on-year. Its pet care business registered 12% growth during the third quarter of 2020, which translates to THB5.15 billion (US$172.18 million) in sales.
A worldwide leader in seafood production, Thai Union is also a force in the global pet food industry as a steady supplier of seafood ingredients to international pet food companies. Locally, Thai Union manufactures and sells the Bellotta-Marvo branded pet food for cats and dogs. The company also has a Bangkok-based Global Innovation Center where a dedicated team conducts research and development on pet food.
Thailand's Ministry of Commerce said it will include pet food among its top exports to be promoted extensively during 22 online business match-making activities in the first half of 2021. To date, Thailand is the world's fourth-largest pet food exporter after the United States, the European Union and China, with total pet food exports worth over US$1.693 billion in 2019.
