Pet Industry News

San Francisco, California, USA lawyers rescued Wal-Mart and a group of petfood manufacturers on March 16 from a class action that could have led to millions of dollars in damages, according to an article on www.Law.com.

A federal judge in Nevada, USA granted a motion by the defense to pre-emptively deny certification to a class of plaintiffs that would have spanned eight states, including California.

Margaret Picus, a Nevada woman, filed a class action in state court against Wal-Mart and a group of food manufacturers in April 2007, alleging that they illegally labeled their petfood "Made in USA," though some ingredients were imported from China.

The previous month, the Food and Drug Administration had announced that certain petfood ingredients imported from China were sickening and killing cats and dogs.

U.S. District Judge Philip Pro of Nevada denied Picus class certification in Picus v. Wal-Mart Stores, 07-00682, ruling that subjective, individual issues made a class action the wrong way to handle the case. Specifically, Pro wrote in his decision, the law requires the plaintiffs to prove that each person who bought the tainted petfood did so because it was labeled "Made in USA."

Looking at the pet industry as a whole, Packaged Facts predicts steady performance in 2009 and 2010, although the market growth rate will drop back slightly due to cutbacks in some categories, according to a press release by Packaged Facts on their newly released report, U.S. Pet Market Outlook 2009-2010: Surviving and Thriving in Challenging Economic Times.

In the report, Packaged Facts projects sales and analyzes growth drivers and opportunities for veterinary services, petfood, non-food pet supplies and other pet services (grooming, boarding, training, etc.).

"Packaged Facts views pet humanization as a dynamic, multifaceted shift that virtually guarantees steady pet market sales not just in 2009 and 2010, but well beyond," says Tatjana Meerman, publisher of Packaged Facts, in an article by www.MarketWire.com. "In most cases … cutbacks would only seriously be considered after owners have reduced spending on their own less essential needs."

The US Food and Drug Administration's (FDA) Center for Food Safety and Applied Nutrition (CFSAN) issued guidance to the food industry advising manufacturers that peanuts and peanut-derived products used as petfood ingredients pose a risk of Salmonella contamination, according to a press release by CFSAN.

CFSAN also issued a companion bulletin to operators of food-service establishments and retail food stores that offer food products containing peanuts and peanut-derived ingredients.

The FDA will accept public comments on the guidance, which along with the bulletin was posted March 9 on the FDA's website (Peanut-Derived Product Guidance and Peanut-Derived Product Bulletin). Both are scheduled to be published soon in the Federal Register.

Assuming that the Canadian economic outlook stays positive over the forecast period, pet services can be expected to be the fastest growing category in the pet industry, according to an article by PETS International. 

Pet travel, including pet hotels, travel agencies, and accessories (such as car seats) will likely continue to drive growth in the sector, buttressed by a strong Canadian dollar and the resulting increase in travel to the United States and other destinations, Euromonitor predicted in the article.

Other less prominent pet services likely to benefit from increasing disposable income amongst pet-owning households include medical services, pet insurance, pet spas, pet masseuses, behaviorists who treat unruly pet behavior, pet sitters, and pet ‘communicators&rsqu o;, or psychologists, according to the article.

According to Euromonitor, there will be businesses opportunities for any company that is able to successfully market its products to consumers wishing to pamper and indulge their pets.

GA Pet Food Partners, a UK dry petfood manufacturer, has partnered with Verm-X to offer any petfood brand the opportunity to add natural internal parasite control to their own range of petfoods or treats, according to a GA press release.

Verm-X is a natural herbal internal parasite control that can be added to new or existing formulations for dog, cat, ferret and small animals, according to the release.

“Verm-X offers a simpler, more natural solution to a real problem,” said Ben Helm, sales and marketing director for GA.

AniMeals, in partnership with Meals on Wheels in Oregon City, Oregon, USA, is helping out struggling pet owners by providing free petfood, according to a video on www.CNN.com.

The petfood bank, whose donations come from area businesses and residents, supplies a month of food no matter what the size of the animal.

Linda Cloud, coordinator of AniMeals, said the program helps needy owners feed their pets because petfood is not covered under food stamps.

With the economic crisis now affecting Main Street US as well as Wall Street, many US animal shelters are facing challenges in providing enough food and proper nutrition to record numbers of pets being left in their care, according to an article on The Earth Times’ website. Wellness, an all-natural petfood brand from WellPet, wanted to provide these dogs with a gift of food.

Wellness, under the sponsorship of its charitable arm, the WellPet Foundation, donated 120 tons of dog food to animal shelters and rescue organizations across the US.

"We appreciate their helping us to keep the animals we look after happy, healthy and well-fed during these difficult times," said David Wolf of the National Greyhound Adoption Program.

Refrigerated, fresh dog food is a growing market that is predicted to increase to $473 million in annual sales by 2012, research firm Packaged Facts told The State Journal-Register in a recent online article.

The Freshpet Select brand sold at Schnucks is a mixture of brown rice, eggs, peas, carrots and barely cooked meats (chicken, turkey, beef, liver), plus added vitamins and minerals.

“It’s been here over a year, and it’s going really well,” said Dennis McCaddon, grocery manager at the Schnucks in Springfield, Illinois. “Customers are saying their dogs really love it.”

Packaged Facts attributes the popularity of fresh dog food to convenience, technological advances, better distribution channels and heightened food-safety concerns.

NaturaPet announced this month 100% of their ingredients will come from trusted, non-Chinese suppliers, according to an article by www.Examiner.com. Natura became the first petfood company in the industry to test and guarantee that all of its products are free from melamine and cyanuric acid.

Supplements are needed to ensure that pets receive optimum nutrition, and among the necessary supplements - certain B vitamins and taurine - have been unavailable from anywhere other than China. After working with its suppliers, Natura has found alternative sources and has been using them exclusively.

"We will not compromise on food safety and nutrition because both are so critical to the health of pets," said Don Scott, president of Natura.

The Natura product line includes Innova, California Natural, EVO, HealthWise, Mother Nature, and Karma.

The Peanut Corp. of America (PCA) has extended its product recall to all petfood products produced since January 1, 2007.

The Food and Drug Administration’s January 27 report on the contamination found in PCA’s Blakely, Georgia, USA, plant cited them for 10 observations.

PCA expanded the recall to include peanut granules, pieces, nuggets, meal, dry roasted, oil roasted, pieces, paste and butter.

No problems have been found in Texas or Virginia plants owned by PCA.

Two bills (SB 5329 and HB 1406) were introduced Wednesday in Washington state that would impose a fee on petfood of $57.50 per ton to fund spay/neuter programs. This fee would be unprecedented in both its size (the highest tonnage fee is $1 in Louisiana right now) and intended use (to fund spay/neuter programs rather than inspections).

The bills would establish a companion animal spay/neuter assistance program within the Department of Agriculture. The program would provide assistance to low-income residents as well as “caretakers of feral and free-roaming cats.” (Sec. 3(2)(b))

The bill requires that “each initial distributor or responsible buyer of petfood must pay to the department a companion animal spay/neuter fee on all petfood distributed by such person during the reporting period.” (Sec. 7 (2)(b))

The digest on both bills asserts that “the program should be funded through a fee that is practical, administratively feasible, and targeted at the class of Washington residents that is most responsible for companion animals and their impact on our communities: Owners of cats and dogs.”

The Pet Food Institute is currently attempting to stop the bills' progress

The Danish Food Minister Eva Kjer Hansen has visited Aller Petfood - part of the Danish company Aller Mølle Group - to talk about “simplifications of rules,” according to an article on www.AllAboutFeed.com.

In the meeting, personnel of Aller Petfood explained the daily work of a petfood producer. Also the removal of the restriction to use glucosamine in petfood for foreign customers was discussed with Hansen.

The relaxation of these rules mean that companies such as Aller Petfood can use glucosamine in petfood for export and thereby compete on the same level as their foreign colleagues.

Anthony Holloway, owner of www.K9Cuisine.com, is willing to deliver free dog food to the White House doorstep for the new First Dog.

"I want to reach out to my former Illinoisans' future pooch," says Holloway.

"First we have to figure out how free shipping and delivery is handled at the secure White House."

President-elect Barack Obama reportedly is looking for a hypoallergenic dog for his daughters.

The Obama family has narrowed its choices for the new First Dog and is looking in Washington-area shelters.

Daughters Sasha and Malia soon will own a Labradoodle or a Portuguese water dog.

Holloway’s online pet store is based in Paris, Illinois, and offers petfood without gluten, soy, corn or wheat, according to the Web site.

In the wake of the recent deaths of more than 300 dogs due to aflatoxin-contaminated food, the Animal Protection Association of the Republic of China called for the government to formulate regulations to ensure the safety of petfood.

Huang Ching-jung, secretary-general of the association, says that tests on aflatoxin, melamine and pesticide should be part of the regulation.

In response, Hsu Tien-lai, chief of the Council of Agriculture (COA) Animal Husbandry Department, replied that the council will draft a bill to be submitted to the Legislative Yuan to consider adopting.

Many animal rescue groups and shelters across the country report that they've seen an increase in the number of pet owners forced to give up their dogs and cats because of the tough economy.

"Animals are the victims when finances are tight," says Lynne Ouchida, community outreach coordinator for the Humane Society of Central Oregon (HSCO). "Like all shelters across the nation, we have felt the impact of the economy on animals and witnessed the tears when people have to give up their animals due to foreclosure."

Animal shelter and rescue group officials offer the following advice to pet owners faced with a financial crisis:

• Contact your local humane society or animal rescue group; they might have programs in place to assist people and their pets in difficult times.
• Never leave your pets in a foreclosed home.
• Be proactive; talk to lenders, family, and friends.
• Try to keep vaccinations and flea treatments current.
• Don't be afraid to ask for help.

Animal lovers can also help struggling pets—and their owners—during these tough economic times by:

• Providing temporary housing for pets while their owners get settled.
• Supporting their local animal shelters by donating food, money, or time.
• Helping a pet owner in need by pay for their animals' food or veterinary bills.
• Contacting local animal control officers if they know about a pet living in a house that is abandoned.