Blue Buffalo already trades on the “humanization” of pet food, which has seen pet parents trending toward more wholesome, and more expensive, options for their pets. Fresh pet food is an extension of that tendency.
“Today’s pet owners are treating their pets as well as, or better than, themselves,” wrote CoBank’s Billy Roberts in a report on fresh pet food last year. “Consumers generally equate fresh options, particularly refrigerated products, with foods that are natural and, by further extension, healthier.”
The fresh category leader, Freshpet, is on track to pass $1 billion in revenue this year after nearly doubling sales since 2022.
“Freshpet’s success should eventually draw more competition,” Morningstar analyst Kristoffer Inton wrote last month, pointing to the 2023 Blue Buffalo trial.
Mascolo said Blue Buffalo, which General Mills acquired in 2018, was built for this moment.
“We feel really excited about our ability to compete and to win in this fresh segment because our brand purpose actually is to help more parents love and feed their pets like family,” she said. “If you’ve ever seen somebody feed fresh food to their dogs, it’s a different sort of pet reaction, and it’s a different way for you to show your love at mealtime.”
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