Latest news with #LoveMadeFresh
Miami Herald
6 hours ago
- Business
- Miami Herald
General Mills launching Blue Buffalo fresh pet food nationwide
General Mills learned some valuable lessons about fresh dog food after Blue Buffalo tested the concept a few years ago at a handful of retailers. First, the good boys and girls love it. "They literally will stand in front of a refrigerator and ask for the food again," CEO Jeff Harmening said. Second, it would take some effort to make it work on a large scale. "We did not have the right commercial business model to support it, because there's different operating dynamics in the fresh segment than there are in dry kibble," said Liz Mascolo, president of the North America pet division at General Mills. That behind-the-scenes work has led to Blue Buffalo's "Love Made Fresh" portfolio, which will debut nationwide later this year in several formats and formulas, the company announced Monday. By fully entering the $3 billion fresh-pet-food market, Blue Buffalo latches onto the fastest-growing part of the industry. Mascolo said she expects the category to reach $10 billion within a decade. "It's an opportunity for us to drive the growth of the fresh segment, but it's a bigger opportunity for us to drive Blue Buffalo overall," she said, as most fresh customers also buy kibble. "You'll see us show up differently, talking about ways that people can incorporate fresh into their feeding versus an all-or-nothing approach." 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." Love Made Fresh isn't the only major move General Mills' pet business is making this year. Belgian pet food brand Edgard & Cooper, a fast-rising hit across Europe that General Mills bought for an undisclosed sum last year, is coming stateside. PetSmart locations nationwide will exclusively sell the brand starting in July, General Mills said in its Monday announcements. "It's got a very vibrant personality. It's a very fun brand," Mascolo said. "It's also a really premium, high-quality product, and nutritionally, it's different. We only use fresh meat, so there's no meal or ground meat, then add a ton of fruits and vegetables and no grains." Copyright (C) 2025, Tribune Content Agency, LLC. Portions copyrighted by the respective providers.
Business Wire
18 hours ago
- Business
- Business Wire
General Mills Accelerates Growth With Blue Buffalo Expansion Into Fresh and Edgard & Cooper U.S. Launch
MINNEAPOLIS--(BUSINESS WIRE)--General Mills today announced two new launches within its North America Pet segment with initiatives from Blue Buffalo and Edgard & Cooper, designed to meet evolving pet parent preferences and accelerate the company's growth in pet feeding. Blue Buffalo to launch 'Love Made Fresh' Blue Buffalo — the most loved and trusted natural pet food brand in the U.S. — is entering fresh pet food with the national launch of 'Love Made Fresh,' offering pet parents more ways to love and feed their pets like family. Using its trusted nutritional philosophy and superior ingredients, Blue Buffalo will meet a growing trend of pet parents looking for fresh pet food, as well as a preference for mixing fresh with kibble and other formats. Blue Buffalo's 'Love Made Fresh' will feature multiple formats and a variety of flavorful recipes, designed to be a standalone fresh solution or a perfect companion to its portfolio of dry dog food. Arriving in stores nationwide later this year, this new fresh portfolio reflects General Mills' commitment to meet the evolving expectations of pet parents and unlock growth in a dynamic $3 billion fresh pet food sub-category. With this launch, Blue Buffalo will represent the largest U.S. pet food brand to offer solutions across dry, wet and fresh feeding. Edgard & Cooper expands to U.S. Following its April 2024 acquisition of Edgard & Cooper, a leading European premium pet food brand, General Mills will launch the brand in the U.S. this July through an exclusive retail partnership with PetSmart, a leading omni-channel pet retailer. This U.S. launch will feature Edgard & Cooper's fresh take on pet nutrition, with recipes made with real, recognizable ingredients like fresh chicken, venison and duck, combined with nutritious fruits and vegetables. The range spanning dry food, wet food and treats is designed to support dogs of all breeds and life stages. The national PetSmart launch will leverage Edgard & Cooper's digital-first, social-led marketing approach — a proven driver of its rapid growth in Europe — and further PetSmart's position in the super-premium segment. 'Pet parents are redefining how they feed and treat their pets, and at General Mills, we're listening and continuing to bring trusted, high-quality natural solutions to a rapidly evolving marketplace,' said Liz Mascolo, segment president, North America Pet, General Mills. 'These moves position us to lead in both scale and innovation across the pet food aisle, with offerings that appeal to the fastest growing demographic in the category — young pet parents.' These investments align with General Mills' Accelerate strategy, combining brand leadership with relentless innovation and consumer-centric insights to drive long-term growth. Stay tuned to learn more about Blue Buffalo's 'Love Made Fresh' portfolio, coming to stores nationwide later this year. Learn more about Edgard & Cooper's U.S. portfolio at General Mills makes food the world loves. The company is guided by its Accelerate strategy to boldly build its brands, relentlessly innovate, unleash its scale and stand for good. Its portfolio of beloved brands includes household names like Cheerios, Nature Valley, Blue Buffalo, Häagen-Dazs, Old El Paso, Pillsbury, Betty Crocker, Yoplait, Totino's, Annie's, Wanchai Ferry, Yoki and more. General Mills generated fiscal 2024 net sales of U.S. $20 billion. In addition, the company's share of non-consolidated joint venture net sales totaled U.S. $1 billion. For more information, visit
