Are Pet Food Companies Hiding Behind Buzz Words?

This originally appeared on Keep The Tail Wagging. I guest blog for various pet related blogs and sites.

http://www.keepthetailwagging.com/pet-food-companies-buzz-words/

Thinking back to a gentler time, those of us that went to “health food stores” were odd, weird, hippies and were dancing to a different drum. We heard, “it was just a weird fad this “organic” thing”.

Our buzz word then was “natural or organic”. What we wanted to put in our bodies had to be from natural, clean sources without chemicals and processing. We were diligent and stuck to the dogma!  We knew local sourcing was best. Getting foods locally was more efficient and we could SEE where our food was grown and how. Our “natural” dogma became inclusive of our pets, quickly.

I could never understand why anyone wanted a pet food that was created in a laboratory! Here is something from Dr Karen Becker on the “reinvention” of Science Diet.

We have options that get the science out and aid in the health of your pets with real whole raw foods.

The “Natural Pet Food Category” took off in the 2000’s and became a big moneymaker for the newer upstart “natural pet food companies”. “Natural” became the buzzword in pet food, too. The years went by and the message was getting out to pet owners that their pets should eat better and they wanted better products for their pets!

Here we are in 2014 and the dreaded buzz word is “natural pet food”. Go figure! Lots of money was made being made with natural pet products! The Big Pet Food companies wanted in because they started losing ground. Their grocery brands were safe because the public at large was still buying their pet food when they were in the large grocery stores. Also, the public at large was still un-educated to the benefits of natural foods but that has taken a hit now, too. The evidence is the explosion of “natural or healthy” pet products in the big box stores and the grocery chains.

Big Pet Food will not lose money! They found a way to use the buzzwords everyone needs to buy a product without spending the extra money it takes to use the proper ingredients. The ingredients are probably from China. That’s how they continue to make money. Misrepresenting the products and basically fooling the average pet owner.

The Moral of the Story? Think local, ask questions. Where are the ingredients from that are in the product you want to buy? What did those animals eat? Manufacturers that are in this game to actually help your pets’ nutrition will tell you because they are proud of it! It’s that simple.

The Dogma Natural Pet Market

8420 Main St

Woodstock, GA 30188

678.460.6DOG

thedogmaonline@gmail.com