Natural/Organic Pet Food: Page 33

Natural/Organic Pet Food

Natural petfood market follows human market growth

Despite continuing economic woes in some regions and markets—and consumers still spending conservatively no matter what their financial situations—sales of natural foods, petfoods and other products continue to grow. Consider this: US sales of natural foods and beverages rose 7.7% in 2010 to US$21.3 billion in natural stores alone, according to Natural Foods Merchandiser and described by A. Elizabeth Sloan in the July issue of Food Technology magazine.

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Veterinarian clarifies natural, organic petfood label terms

Petfood ingredient labels can be confusing to pet owners because certain terms have no legal definition. Ernest Ward, veterinarian and founder of the Association for Pet Obesity Prevention, says pet owners need to do their research when selecting what to feed their dog or cat. Ward says there is no official definition for the term "natural," which could mean anything that is not syntheic, but does not guarantee the product's quality or nutritional value.

Greenopia's consumer tips on natural petfood selection

A popular trend in the petfood industry is consumers' recent demands for natural and organic petfoods. In an article from thedailygreen.com, Doug Mazeffa, research director at Greenopia.com, offers tips to consumers on selecting a "green" petfood.

Market Trends and Reports

Market update: Superpremium petfood post-recession

Premium petfoods—defined by Packaged Facts as those priced at least 10% above the category average—accounted for 40% of petfood sales in 2010, followed by regular petfood at 27% and value petfood at 14%, with treats comprising the remaining 18% of sales. On both the dog and cat sides of the market, the premium share of sales has contracted a bit with the recession while the regular and value segments have risen a notch or two.

According to Packaged Facts, the term superpremium is generally reserved for the highest quality products, which are positioned on clear-cut health claims (and higher prices), thereby ruling out most mass-market brands and concentrating in the pet specialty channel.

Stella & Chewy's to relocate natural petfood plant

Stella & Chewy’s will relocate from its current natural petfood production plant in Muskego, Wisconsin, USA, to a larger petfood manufacturing facility in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, USA. The company currently has about 40 full-time employees and occupies a 17,000-square-foot space in Muskego, but recently leased a 48,862-square-foot facility from Lassman Family Ltd. Partnership.

Dr. Harvey's launches natural petfood, pet products video series

Dr. Harvey's holistic petfood company launched a YouTube video series on pet health, as well as the importance of feeding an all-natural petfood diet and using chemical-free pet products. These videos, which appear on Dr. Harvey's petfood website and on the company's YouTube channel, highlight the company's holistic pet product benefits and the philosophy behind them.

Petfood follows organic food trends of pet owners

Recent trends in organic food have carried over from the plates of pet owners to the bowls of their pets. Big-box pet retailers and pet specialty stores are increasingly stocking shelves with premium, organic, locally-sourced, free-range, minimally-processed and raw petfoods to follow this trend, says a recent Los Angeles Times article.

Pet insurance company offers petfood and nutrition tips for consumers

Pet insurance company Petplan's online blog offers consumer guidelines on selecting a petfood, as cases of petfood contamination and recalls have become more frequent. A report from Packaged Facts predicted the sales of natural and organic petfoods to grow three times faster than regular petfoods through 2015, though the pet insurance company warns consumers that the two terms are not the same.

P&G expands Iams Naturals petfood line

Procter & Gamble's Iams petfood brand added two dry dog food recipes to its Naturals petfood line: Sensitive Naturals, and Simple & Natural. The Sensitive Naturals recipe contains ocean fish as the first ingredient, Iams says, and is ideal for dogs with ingredient sensitivities

California, USA, natural petfood company expands production

A new line of boutique wet dog food is expanding petfood production for Lotus Natural Pet Foods, in Torrance, California, USA, according to a Packaging Digest article. The company began with a line of dry petfoods that are baked, not extruded, and made from all-natural ingredients.

Natural Balance Pet Foods honors working canines for September 11

Natual Balance Pet Foods sponsored a contest with Dog Fancy magazine to honor the United States' top working dogs, in honor of the 10th anniversary of the September 11 tragedy. Natural Balance's Working Canine Hero of the Year contest named three winning dogs: Air Force dog Lucky; a search-and-rescue dog named Hunter; and Renzo, a K9 with the Shreveport, Louisiana, USA, police department.

Wysong, Green Dog partner to promote natural petfood, retailers

Wysong natural petfood corp. has partnered with Green Dog Promotions LLC to promote Wysong's pet product lines as well as the company's petfood retailers. Beginning in early July, Green Dog will begin its promotional efforts in New Jersey, Delaware, eastern Pennsylvania and northern Maryland, USA.

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