Direct and Indirect Purchases of Big Pet Feed – The Truth About Pet Food

Mars Petcare will buy two pet food manufacturers in 2022. NomNom in January 2022 and Champion Pet Food in November 2022. Earlier this month (April 2023) Mars made another acquisition; Heska veterinary medicine.

Mars is currently the owner The following pet care businesses:

But Mars Petcare has an indirect way of investing in many pet food/pet businesses. Mars created “Petcare”.Companion Fund” – an investment company dedicated to the pet products industry. The Companion Fund website says:We are a team of investors, entrepreneurs, scientists, pet care professionals and passionate pet owners. At Companion Fund, we invest in a better world for petsHe said. This ‘group of investors, entrepreneurs, scientists, pet care professionals and passionate pet owners’ are all part of the Mars PetCare – Mars Companion Fund.

As reported by Digiday.com (Online Business Magazine)

“Mars is looking for himself as cement
One of the biggest and most influential
Developing investors in the animal care industryHe said.

Here is a list of companies that Mars Petcare Companion Fund has already invested in:

jump – “Pet specific start accelerator“
Companion – “Learning habits for dogs“
Napo – “Pet insurance“
Made with nachos – “Chef approved cat food“
Mollybox – “An ecommerce platform for pet owners in China“
MySimplePetLab – “Animal inspection at home“
A pet – “Functional nutrition“
Pap – “A very human pet brand” – Online Veterinary Virtual Care
Pet Medix – “Antibody-based therapies“
Refresh the bio – “Gene therapies“
RiverDog – “Investment retention, out-of-the-box onboarding“
Scoutbio – “Treatments for major chronic pet health“
Scratch fee – “Easy payment solutions to get the medical care your pets need“
Small ones – “Direct to consumer cat food“
in tail behavior – “The first step in responsible dog ownership“
TellTail – “Community for honest breeders“
Ved – “Automated medical record technology“

Unfortunately, Mars Pet Care isn’t the only food manufacturer investing in small pet businesses. General Mills — owner of the Blue Buffalo pet food brand — is also investing.

General Mills has its own investment company – Gold Medal Venture. General Mills has invested in the following pet businesses.

Cat food (where Mars is invested) and Pet bowl.

Purina does things a little differently. Purina awards new companies under the “”Pet care innovation“Brand. Pet Care Innovation’s website says: “The PCI Award is given to early-stage companies that define the future of pet care with innovative products or services that provide meaningful solutionsHe said.

Winners of the Purina Pet Care Innovation Award do not sell part of their business to Purina, but are offered to join the Purina network to receive business training (and possibly future investments). Pet Care Innovation Award winners are companies that Purina has spoken with (we don’t know how involved Purina is in any of the brands).

The sad news for pet owners is that the big industry is paying close attention to the products we buy for pets and trying their best to engage with those companies.

For this reason, every pet owner we trust in our pet’s life (from your vet to your pet’s food) has invested in their business (or with veterinary services – it’s important to ask your vet if you use proprietary services) at Big Pet Food/ Feed).

Adopt pets that align with your personal beliefs.

Note: Smalls Pet Food was a brand included in the 2023 list. It was removed due to investments by Mars Petcare and General Mills.

The pup above was a brand that was included in the 2023 list. Removed (but can be restored). The owner of the company, Purina, assures us that they did not invest in their company/have any influence on their company, they only received prize money from the Pet Care Innovation program.

I wish you and your pet(s) the best,

Susan Thixton
Pet food safety advocate
Author Buyer Beware, Associate Author Dinner PAWsible
TruthaboutPetFood.com
Association for Truth in Animal Food

Become a member of our Pet Food Consumers Association. The Association for True Pet Food is a stakeholder organization that represents the voice of pet food consumers with AAFCO and the FDA. Your membership enables representatives to attend meetings and voice customer concerns with regulatory authorities. Click here To know more.

What’s in your pet’s food?
Is your dog or cat eating dangerous substances? A Chinese importer? The Petsummer Report tells ‘the rest of the story’ on over 5,000 cat foods, dog foods and pet treats. 30 day satisfaction guarantee. Click here To preview Petsumer’s report. www.PetsumerReport.com

Click here to find healthy pets in your area

List of 2023
Susan’s List of Trusted Pet Foods. Click here to learn more.