News & Newsletters: Page 816

Market Trends and Reports

Purina launches search for 'Purina Cat Chow Correspondent'

Purina has launched a search for the "Purina Cat Chow Correspondent" as part of a plan to connect with cat owners all over the US. The person chosen for the role will travel the country and connect with fellow cat owners about how they nurture well-being in their cats.

Market Trends and Reports

Pet Industry Distributors Association elects 2011 officers, directors

The Pet Industry Distributors Association elected its 2011 officers and directors during the organization's 43rd Management Conference and Annual Meeting in Coronado, California, USA. At the conference, held January 26-29, PIDA members elected Fred Schober, chief operating officer of Phillips Feed & Pet Supply, as chairman.

University of Illinois grad student awarded Nutro Natural Pet Nutrition Fellowship

University of Illinois graduate student Alison Beloshapka of Manhattan, Illinois, USA, has been awarded one of the first Nutro Co. Natural Pet Nutrition Fellowships to fund her tuition and fees for three years of PhD training. “When I discovered that the Nutro Co. would be funding my PhD career, I was surprised and excited,” said Beloshapka.

Hesco receives 'A' grade on British Retail Consortium audit

Hesco Inc. earned a Certification Grade of “A” at their Hastings, Nebraska, USA, facility during their recent third-party British Retail Consortium audit recognized by the Global Food Safety Initiative. Under the GFSI scheme, food producers and manufacturers are benchmarked against food safety requirements by independent licensed auditors.

Kostas Kontopanos named president of Hill's Pet Nutrition

Kostas Kontopanos has been named president of Hill's Pet Nutrition Inc. US, moving up from his previous position as vice president of marketing. Kontopanos succeeds Suzan Harrison, who was appointed president, commercial business analytics at Colgate-Palmolive in January.

Market Trends and Reports

The Nutro Co. donates one million cat meals to the Petco Foundation

In February, the Nutro Co. donated more than one million meals of its Natural Choice cat food to the Petco Foundation's petfood bank program via collection bins in Petco stores nationwide. "It's important to the Nutro Co. to give back and support a healthy lifestyle for all pets, which starts with a well-balanced diet," said Kent Cunningham, vice president of marketing.

New US food safety bill means changes for importers

The US Food and Drug Administration Food Safety Modernization Act, signed into law on Jan. 4, will have a significant impact on food importers, who will need to focus on things like foreign supplier verification programs, certifications and inspections to comply with the new rules. Regulations will require each importer to have a program to ensure that food produced outside the US is subject to procedures that provide the same level of public health protection as is required of producers in the US.

'Prey model' pet diet sparks illegal online wild game business

The "prey diet," which involves feeding animals raw game similar to what they would hunt in the wild, has jump-started an illegal wild game-selling business on the Internet, according to Florida officials quoted in a USA Today article. According to wildlife investigators, people caught selling raw meat without a permit face up to five years in jail and a US$5,000 fine.

Normerica offers natural petfood products for dogs, cats

Normerica Inc. offers a complete line of natural petfood products, for cats and dogs, made with environmentally friendly packaging and manufacturing processes. Normerica sells products from VitaLife, which produces dog treats and other natural petfood products.

Preservative TBHQ may present hazards in petfood

Tertiary butylhydroquinone, TBHQ, is a chemical preservative used in food and petfood to delay the onset of rancidness and greatly extend the storage life of foods. According to an article by Shona Botes on NaturalNews.com, the Food and Drug Administration allows amounts of up to 0.02% of the total oils in food to be TBHQ, but consuming high doses (between 1 and 4 grams) can cause nausea, delirium, collapse, tinnitus and vomiting.

Euromonitor report 'Other Pet Food - Japan' available

Euromonitor's latest report, "Other Pet Food – Japan," which focuses on the food of pets suited to the close living conditions in the country, is now available. Animals such as birds, rabbits, fish and shrimp are covered.

Market Trends and Reports

Petfood maker Freshpet selects Darling as agency of record

Petfood maker Freshpet selected Darling Agency of New York, USA, as its first agency of record. Freshpet previously handled advertising in-house on a project basis, but will now dedicate a US$16 million budget toward television, print, digital and outdoor advertising.

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