Freshpet

Freshpet is an American manufacturer of refrigerated food and treats for dogs and cats using natural ingredients, and are the first in the fresh and refrigerated category to be distributed across North America.^[1] It was founded in 2006 by pet food industry professionals and combines meats with fresh fruits and vegetables to make a variety of foods and treats for pets. The company does not use any preservatives, fillers, by-products or ingredients from China in its products.^[2][3] Freshpet stock is traded on Nasdaq under the ticker symbol "FRPT".^[4]

Pet foods manufactured by this company are available in branded refrigerators at over 10,000 stores throughout North America.^[5] Freshpet can be found in grocery and mass-market stores, natural food retailers, and pet specialty stores, including retailers such as Target, Whole Foods, petco,^[6] petsmart^[7] and Walmart.^[2][8]

While sales in other pet food categories were declining due to the recession, the frozen/refrigerated dog food market grew by 10% in 2010, with similar growth in the refrigerated cat food market. According to Pet Market Outlook 2011-2012, "this growth is attributable almost exclusively to the efforts of Freshpet." While frozen/refrigerated pet food still represents less than one percent of total pet food sales, sales in this particular segment are expected to grow by 25% on a compounded annual basis through 2015.^[9] Freshpet also has Freshpet Vet site where veterinarians can gain detailed information on which fresh pet food is best to recommend to pet patients.^[10]

Manufacturing facility

In 2013, Freshpet opened a new manufacturing facility, the Freshpet Kitchens, located in Bethlehem, Pennsylvania. This new $25 million facility was built to resemble human-grade manufacturing standards. All Freshpet food recipes are manufactured in this facility.^[3]

Current products

Freshpet food makes a variety of fresh refrigerated dog and cat foods and dog treats under brands such as Freshpet Select, Dog Joy, Vital, Nature's Fresh and Dognation. Freshpet Select foods and Dog Joy treats are sold at grocery and mass merchandise retailers. Vital foods, and Dognation treats are sold at pet specialty retailers. Nature's Fresh foods are sold at natural retailers. Pet fresh foods must be kept refrigerated at all times as they are perishable goods. Freshpet dog foods are marked by the "Freshest if sold by" date. Once opened, they must be used within 2 to 14 days depending on the product type.

Minimal processing

Unlike traditional shelf-stable pet foods, Freshpet ingredients are cooked once at lower temperatures. The main ingredients in the foods are fresh meats and vegetables because they are naturally rich in amino acids and nutrients.^[11] Thus, similar to less-processed foods such as milk, natural cooked meats and yogurt, the meals have a shorter shelf life. Almost all of the ingredients used in the food are sourced from North America. Pet fresh food does not use any ingredients from China.^[12]

Media exposure

In the 2007 pet food recalls, being one of the few pet food companies not affected, Freshpet capitalized on the opportunity and had record-high sales.^[13] The New York Times reported that as of April 2013, Freshpet sales revenue in supermarkets, mass-market department stores and club stores, grew more than 44 percent.^[3] In the fall of 2013, the Associated Press wrote a feature article on Freshpet food and the growing trend of buying holistic food for pets.^[5] In September 2014 Freshpet placed at number 8 on Google’s YouTube Ad Leaderboard, which ranks the 10 most-viewed commercials posted to the site in that month. The commercial starred YouTube celebrity, Noah Ritter - nicknamed "Apparently Kid," garnering 3.2 million views.^[14] In 2011 Freshpet signed with Darling Agency of New York as its first agency of record. The agency created a TV campaign that aired on ABC, CBS and NBC. The 30 sec and two 15 seconds spots ran during The View,^[15] Good Morning America, The Today Show and Rachael Ray. Fresh Pet ads also ran on cable networks. According to Kathryn Winstanley, VP of Marketing at Freshpet, the target audience for Freshpet food is ‘empty nesters’^[16] between the ages 45 – 54, whose household income is in excess of $100,000.

Viral YouTube Video

On December 7, 2015, Freshpet uploaded the Santa Elves video on their YouTube page with 458,618 views so far.^[17] The video was made in collaboration with the Salt Lake County Animal Services.^[18] Freshpet announced a donation of one meal of Freshpet food for every share the video generates. Freshpet has been a leader in the utilization of digital viral videos which gain many millions of views and in addition significant levels of PR in Mashable,^[19] Huffington post,^[20] previously Freshpet has released the Freshpet Holiday Feast – 13 Dogs and 1 Cat Eating with Human Hands and the Apparently Kid’s First Ever TV Commercial. According to Katie Tyson,^[21] Freshpet’s Marketing Manager, Apparently Kid’s First Ever TV Commercial was released to "drive brand awareness."

References

Further reading

• NJ.com - Paw Print: Pet food company steps up to the plate
• South Charlotte Weekly – Culinary Corner: Canine Cuisine
• Businessweek Article - NOT Made In China
• ABC News - Pet food alternatives for worried owners
• Business notes: Hoboken resident named VP at The Marcus Group
• Business notes: Freshpet to make presentation available on web

External links

• Supermarket News – Fresh Pet Fare Spurs Category Sales