Pet Food Experts, a pet food distribution company has “made the decision to end the distribution relationship with Nestle Purina Pet Care in New York and New England.”
When your local pet store stocks its shelves, it goes through a pet food distributor. Distributors are who purchase directly from the pet food manufacturers, warehouse the multiple product lines, and deliver foods to your neighborhood pet food store.
PetAge.com – a pet food industry publication – announced that one distributor is ending its relationship with Purina – no longer carrying any Purina product for sale to pet food stores.
“This important strategic decision demonstrates our unwavering commitment to our company mission,” said Michael Baker, president of Pet Food Experts. “Helping independent pet retailers win is our sole focus! Being independently owned, we have to be diligent in maximizing our resources and I’m confident this decision will only make us stronger.”
Interesting.
Pet Food Experts has distribution areas all across the northern U.S. No information was provided if the company intends to ‘end its distribution relationship’ with Purina in all areas.
Could it be that this one pet food distributor is actually listening to consumers? Are major players in pet food (distributors ARE major players in pet food) paying attention that feed grade ingredient pet foods are not actually food?
Interesting.
Wishing you and your pet(s) the best,
Susan Thixton
Pet Food Safety Advocate
Author Buyer Beware, Co-Author Dinner PAWsible
TruthaboutPetFood.com
Association for Truth in Pet Food
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Bill McQuade
April 15, 2015 at 5:30 pm
I am in the industry. (independent) and rumor has it that Nestle dropped them and more,bigger, distributors to follow.
Barbara Tomlinson
April 15, 2015 at 9:29 pm
Why would nestle Purina drop them? Doesn’t make any sense to anyone! I’m glad to hear this news!!! My puppy almost died from eating puppy chow…I am sorry for the people that lost their family members because of nestle Purina pet FEED!
Mike C
April 16, 2015 at 5:43 pm
Whoa! A multi-national company dropping a Distributor? Don’t think so…Counter-attack?Perhaps…Shill? Dont know and don’t really care…ID yourself..and your company to be credible…. Pets are very important to everyone and they need the best food possible, just like a child. Now the junk that goes into pet food has got to be stopped.It’s inhumane.” Where are all the Foundations that claim they want to protect pets? Kudos to this Pet Distributor.Pet Experts…..I do hope many more follow them and drop Purina or any other pet food manufaucturer until the food is prepared in a wholesome, healthy way. You wouldn’t knowingly give your child that type of food would you? Wait! we do because our current laws don’t admit that GMO foods are DNA and RNA destructive! Woe is us…pets and all…Speak with your pocket book…It makes a huge dent when sales drop! Purina is about to get hit with an avalanche and no amount of hype can stop it…Do the right thing,Purina..do the right thing…or addios amigo!
Tracey
April 16, 2015 at 6:42 pm
Please, I doubt it! You probably work for Purina/Nestle. The distributor did the right thing. Who in their right mind would want to be associated with Purina? NOBODY that’s who. Purina is disgusting crap that should not be feed to any animal. If the FDA would get off is ass and do their job, then Purina would have been off store shelves long ago. Thank God this distributor ended business with Purina.
Wolf
April 15, 2015 at 5:49 pm
Nestle dropped Purina?????
Susan Thixton
April 15, 2015 at 5:59 pm
I think he was meaning he heard that Nestle (Purina) dropped the distributor instead of the other way around (as reported in the trade publication).
Trouble
April 15, 2015 at 6:57 pm
Do you think that’s true? How would we really find out which is true? Why would Purina drop them in the first place? They’re struggling – even if it is only minor – with this whole Beneful issue going on, plus any other issues going on that are not as “news worthy”. I would think Purina would want all the help they can get to keep their product on the shelves.
It makes me wonder, who distributes to the store I work for? Hmmmmmmm….. I may have to do some digging on this. 🙂
B Dawson
April 16, 2015 at 9:37 am
Welcome to the world of retail pet supply. Because I researched every product that came into my store, I listened first to the distributor sales pitch, then contacted the manufacturing reps directly to hear their side. Far too often it was the “he said/she said” routine.
I remember vividly a particular pet food (I won’t name names) blaming the manufacturer for the contaminated rice protein that resulted in their food being recalled. As this was the only food in my store affected by the recall, I dug deep to find out where my research had fallen short. When I talked with the co-pack rep, he angrily – and I meant angrily – told me that the pet food company was the one who brought in the contaminated ingredient to “his” plant and triggered all their problems. Of course commonsense would dictate that if a single pet food company had brought in the ingredient for their own formula, how in the heck would that explain the contamination of hundreds of other products that this company also co-packed? Of course it can’t, but that doesn’t mean the manufacturer isn’t going to try and get away with it. It’s all about saving face.
In the end, retailers can only find out so much. I spent close to 4 hours on any given day just doing research on the products I carried – who made them, where they were made, who produced the meat that went into the products. After 10 years of doing this, I burned out. My conclusion, sadly, is that ANY big industry – pharma, Wall Street or pet food – is about self preservation and what they can get away with by presenting information in such a way that consumers reach conclusions that are favorable to their products. Eventually even companies like P & G (Iams, Innova, Cal. Natural) can’t sustain the spin and exit the pet food market. Purina may be the next, who knows.
Roxy
April 16, 2015 at 7:22 pm
It’s really easy to find out who is the stores distributors. Other than Petco…they have their own warehouse…and their own trucks..
Check out the the large distribution truck parked in the back when they get their next shipment..or google distributors within your local area..In the California area, there are a few large ones in the L.A. area that deliver everywhere in our state. There are a few who only distribute to independent retailers…which I am one..
Gaye
April 16, 2015 at 8:00 am
WHY did this distributor decide to drop Purina products?? There is no mention of that in this article. Was it a business decision for some reason or was it a quality issue?? There is a big difference.
I use Pro Plan and have been very happy with it!
curious
April 15, 2015 at 6:15 pm
FINALLY! Almost all of the Purina one bags are contaminated with worms, moths, and some disgusting webbing. If you’ve ever gone into petco/petsmart and moths are flying around that’s where they come from. Then the bugs eat their way into other food bags and contamination begins. Customers bring back the bags with live worms crawling around. It’s disgusting!
Peggy
April 26, 2015 at 2:14 pm
OMG yes they do! This happened to me several years back when i got my jack russell and bought food there and was either beneful or purina one, (no longer feed either one) but I of course took it back, and the store rep asked if I wanted to go get another bag….uh NOPE – just give me my money back. I left and haven’t been back to that store ever since.
Debi Cohen
April 15, 2015 at 6:18 pm
Sounds like a good thing to me, hope it is anyway.
Leilani
April 15, 2015 at 6:23 pm
It’s just the beginning. Perhaps an officer of the company has pets or someone in his family does. Bottom line: Susan has made the difference. Thank you.
DarkStar
April 15, 2015 at 6:53 pm
People who find worms, bugs, and anything else that is NOT supposed to be in their bags of dry food should be taking photos and making videos with a date stamp and posting them on every social media outlet that they can. Social media is the most efficient way to let others know their experience, and as we all know, when public opinion is changed as a result of this information, that will affect the bottom line of the corporations responsible. As unfortunate as it is, it seems that only until they start losing money (customers) will they then seek to re-evaluate their manufacturing process.
Ann*
April 17, 2015 at 4:55 pm
Agree, 100% and a great plan to use social media as suggested.
Hal
April 15, 2015 at 7:14 pm
I’m going to guess that Nestle/Purina has some of the best quality control in the industry. Sure they’ve had their recalls, but considering their massive production, it’s small in comparison to other pet food suppliers. I’m not sure why they don’t try producing natural foods with novel proteins or at least sign canning and distribution agreements with some of the smaller boutique manufacturers of natural cat food so they can get a piece of the action. How many of us would rather see our favorite brands canned by Purina rather than the infamous canneries we all know too well.
Let’s hope that Nestle/Purina is attempting to buy their own worldwide distribution arm and apply their more stringent quality controls to an industry that sorely needs it. It would be similar to the time McDonald’s got disgusted with having 3rd parties processing their meat and seeing problems with bacteria and took complete control of the process.
julie
April 15, 2015 at 9:46 pm
have some of you actually been reading all the information that has been researched by susan about pet food ingredients and the ethics of companies !? which is most pet food companies .
its about a lot more than bacteria ! or worms .
Ann*
April 17, 2015 at 5:05 pm
Really???? If what you say is true about the great quality control of Purina, then they would have been able to tell us what it is about their Canyon Creek Chicken Jerky Tenders that killed many dogs and sickened hundreds more, including mine. Yet they maintain the position that they have no idea what caused that.
I will never buy another Nestle Purina product, no matter how “natural” and “boutique” it might wrap it up to be since I will not believe anything Nestle Purina says, especially not their misleading advertising of their pet feed as pet food.
Regina
April 19, 2015 at 10:55 am
Hal, are you new here? Sure, Purina is a name that has been around a long time, and people trust them. At this point, that trust is blind, because people don’t realize the changes in their pets’ foods over the years. Purina at one point may have been a good brand, but by now, all of the bad stuff they produce greatly outweighs any “good” product they may put on the shelf. And even if they did put a “good” product on the shelf, I would never buy it, because my money would then be subsidizing their crap like Beneful and all the other misleading crap they sell. If you’ve ever looked at the “shreds” in a bag of ProPlan, you will see that it is NOT meat. it may look like shredded chicken, but it is a bread-like product made with grains. (Also, I just don’t trust them, if you’re going to make a good product, why also sell the crap??????)
I would much rather put my faith in one of these new smaller companies that have started making pet foods, because they got into the business because they were unable to find an honest pet food company out there that they felt honestly had their pets’ best interests at heart.
Hal, your comments defending Nestle/Purina makes is sound like you actually work for them. Or, at least, you haven’t been paying attention to what’s going on with pet food/feed. ANY brand that makes a cat food with no meat in it CANNOT be trusted. Even if they then do produce one that is decent because you either believe in feeding pets well for the sake of feeding them well, or, you’re just in it for the money.
Jeanette Owen
April 15, 2015 at 8:36 pm
Worms in the bags? How disgusting. That’s what I think of the owners of this company. Filthy people.
Roxanna Evans
April 15, 2015 at 10:24 pm
I am very picky about what I feed my pets. I learned from The China Pet Food Scare to read the ingredients and then some. Recently I was reading that pet food companies put dead cats, dogs, other dead animals, their collar, plastics, metal tags whatever and even the medicines used to euthanize the animals is in their food. I was horrified. Also when I learned live baby chicks were put through a macerator and ground up live for dog food I was sick. Now I will buy no dog food that contains any kind of chicken and I read the ingredients. A lot of things are in disguise on the bag so make sure you know and understand the ingredients in your pet’s food.
Roxanna Evans
April 15, 2015 at 10:26 pm
I just wrote a long article about what is in pet food and you said you would not publish it, why?
Susan Thixton
April 16, 2015 at 8:57 am
I’m not sure what you mean…did you send me an article?
Deb
April 15, 2015 at 10:30 pm
I have purchased MANY bags of both Purina One AND Purina Pro Plan over the past 10 years, and I have NEVER once found ANY bug or worm in the bags.
However, those little moths that you described are called Pantry Moths, & they eat flour and grain products. I have found those moths in almost every bag of wild bird seed that I have ever purchased. I have also found them in bags of hamster food, gerbil food, & sunflower seeds (for the birds). When you see them in PetSmart & other large stores that sell feed, they are more likely to be coming from bags of SEED, and not Purina.
For the record, I have also seen those Pantry moths flying around in our grocery store, in the (human) CEREAL aisle…
Regina
April 19, 2015 at 11:01 am
Pantry moths are called pantry moths because they come into your house/store in foodstuffs that are in everyone’s pantry. That is usually grain products, or foods made with grains. Not too many pantries have birdseed in them. Maybe the birdseed had some grain in it to explain the pantry moths???
Those Purina foods you mention do have a lot of grains in them. If you buy ProPlan with the “shreds of meat” in them, pull apart on of those shreds and tell me what you find. Those shreds are NOT meat. They look like little bits of bread, with the holes and textures that you would find in bread.
Tricia Chapman
April 15, 2015 at 11:33 pm
As a long time purchaser of goods from Pet Food Experts, I understand and follow the same mindset that Mike Baker does. It does not surprise me at all that this choice was made. I am quite thrilled with the idea that I will now have the option of more products that are not in big box stores, and fit the demand that so many pet parents are looking for from stores they trust. It is a win for all of us.
stuart
April 16, 2015 at 2:22 am
Why would anyone buy from Nestlé , they have a pretty disgusting record on their human products and you think they will have your dogs health at heart ?
Avoid all Nestlé products, they make Monsanto look like the good guys.
Edogayla
April 16, 2015 at 8:10 am
Pet Food Experts never carried Purina products in their Midwest distribution.
joyce mosher
April 16, 2015 at 8:13 am
I started to feed my 7 cats purina Beyond dry and wet food back in December of 2013 Due to me losing my job i hunted for a clean food that i could afford . At the time i started feeding The dry chicken Tinker had nasty crusty dermatitis on his chin and at that time they where all getting stupid expensive mail order cat food ,bowls washed everyday and then i went with paper bowls trying to clear it up and massive hair balls even though they are brushed at least 3 times a week …So after a month on Beyond the dermatitis was GONE beautiful clean white chin and neck on tinker …I was so happy as this was painful to him !!! I do feed a wet food at night to make sure they all get more moisture -I did feed their canned food but the cost was crazy for 7 cats so i went with a Holistic wet food and the hair balls are a 3rd of what they where . They do make a clean food the cost is fine and my cats all look wonderful and Purina is HUGE company that the standards must be keep to a certain level . As for the bugs in the food ….. They all get that …Look at the DATES they are there for a reason ..Ever open up grains from your own home and Oh Gosh theres bugs in there …Yeap …By law so many parts per million is allowed so you to are eating bug parts thats why they have the BEST BUY date those little buggers are going to start hatching or get a candy bar from the local store and you get half way through it and Oh NO whats the web in there and you pull it out and looks like maggots in the bottom of the little candy sleeve .
Regina
April 19, 2015 at 11:24 am
Joyce, I’m sorry you lost your job, but there are plenty of ways to feed your cats affordably without having to use Purina. I do not have a lot of money. I cannot afford canned cat food on a regular basis. What I do is buy the best dry food, and put it in water. Dry food is less expensive, because you are not paying to ship the moisture along with it, by adding your own moisture, you are saving money, not to mention the cost and pollution that comes with shipping all those heavy cans of cat food.
I know there are probably going to be people saying we “should” buy cans, but if you can’t afford to buy cans, the next best thing is to buy a really good dry food (which rules out anything by Purina, really) and then add the moisture once you get it home.
And don’t waste money on treats. If you want to give them a treat, use a piece of their dry food!
Hal
April 19, 2015 at 11:33 am
Regina – What do you consider the “best” dry food? I know Nature’s Variety puts out a pretty good one, but other than menadione (synthetic form of Vitamin K), Purina’s Beyond canned line doesn’t really have any bad ingredients. It’s just like any other natural food in that we have to trust the raw materials that make up the formula. We have no idea where they’re getting them other than to be assured it’s not the quality of USDA Prime cut that you find at Costco for $17 per pound.
At the very least, you have to assume that Nestle/Purina’s human resource department has more stringent hiring requirements than the smaller canneries and more employees available to do background checks.
Regina
April 26, 2015 at 9:43 pm
Hal, I’m not going to waste a lot of time responding to you. You defend Purina, so you obviously are not someone who appreciates this site, and the work that Susan does.
Tammy Baugh
April 26, 2015 at 4:44 pm
Yeah.But be sure to moniter that dry cat food you add water too.If it sets out long enough to mold and your cats eat it they may get sick from the mold. I just feed mine we wet food twice daily. They graze on dry eating when they want. But after 1 hour any leftover wet food is flushed in the toilet.
Regina
April 26, 2015 at 9:31 pm
Yes, Tammy. I only put out a little bit at a time, and it gets eaten right away.
marcus
April 16, 2015 at 9:25 am
Huge fan of this site and the work Susan puts in. I really think situations like above are much more than meets the eye when it comes down to wholesalers and manufacturers. They very well could have been dropped by Purina and doing damage control. At the end of the day, it’s still about being profitable and moving units for wholesalers and while we all have disdain for Purina the only really horrific product that stands out is Beneful, which is inexcusable. I am not saying that I like Purina, I don’t – I would never buy their products and I don’t respect them as a company.
Back to Beneful, Purina sells to uneducated pet consumers that rarely ever discover the food is garbage, loaded with food coloring and chemicals and hence, the reason that Purina will not change the formula, the people fighting against Purina and Beneful are NOT their consumers. Simply good people that want better products for animals and this is not really impacting the bottom line for Purina. However, I wish Purina would listen to what the public wants and that’s simply a cleaned up ethical product. Get rid of unnecessary products and chemicals. I can’t understand why Purina will not listen to educated consumers??
It’s almost like they have 1-2 people in organization that’s being stubborn.
I have a question for Susan or would like to see an article on this, what’s the solution for consumers on a very tight budget? is their a food that stands out or solution? ( These are many of the people that buy Beneful ) Many, Many people unfortunately will only spend limited amounts of money on pet food, and I know people that thought Wellness and Blue Buffalo is too expensive. The same people probably think I am crazy because I feed The Honest Kitchen to 4 dogs or Preference and home cook…
Susan Thixton
April 16, 2015 at 11:16 am
Good question Marcus – short answer – food is not cheap, feed is cheap. The least expensive way to provide your pet with food is make it yourself. But then enters the concern of time (lack of time). There is no easy answer for this – but I will try to write something more on it. Soon.
Sarah Melcher
April 16, 2015 at 9:36 am
I own an independent Cat Supplies store online and PFE is one of my distributors. If Nestle dropped Pet Food Experts, it might be because they got forewarned they were going to be dropped by PFE. Either way, Pet Food Experts has taken a tactical decision. They are in a strong growth position right now. Based in Rhode Island and one of the premier distributers in the Northeast, they have recently acquired a distributor in Fife, WA, thereby moving in to the Northwest. Nearly two years ago, they acquired a company in IL, prior to acquiring other distributors on the East Coast. Nestle might not think they do not need Pet Food Experts, and yet Pet Food Experts is in a position where it will surely do just fine without Purina, and possibly better without that baggage as helps smaller independent high-quality food manufacturers, and thereby helps pets themselves.
Regina
April 19, 2015 at 11:26 am
Sarah, thank you for this bit of encouraging information.
B Dawson
April 16, 2015 at 9:46 am
Distributors drop product lines all the time in order to make room for other, better selling products. While it’s nice to think that distributors might be listening to consumers, it’s far more likely that sales on Purina products have waned or Purina wanted to re-negotiate wholesale terms and the cost benefit analysis for carrying Purina is looking unfavorable.
What is listened to is consumer DOLLARS, not consumer outrage.
C Olson
April 16, 2015 at 1:59 pm
I have used Purina dog food products for decades and have NEVER had a problem with any of them. I currently use Pro Plan and my dogs love it. I think some people just like to stir the pot.
Patti
April 16, 2015 at 2:47 pm
It’s not about what they love, but whether or not it’s actually good for them. Kids love junk food, but does that mean you should feed it to them morning, noon and night? I love french fries and cupcakes, but if that’s all I ate for every meal, I might live, but I would not be as healthy as I’m supposed to be. Dogs and cats weren’t designed to eat grains, and Purina’s ingredients are not only awful, but GMO as well (corn, wheat, soy – all GMO). Not to mention the unspecified proteins they use like “meat” and “animal” – what kind of meat? what animal? If they won’t name it, you shouldn’t trust it. Since you commented on this website, it seems like you’d know the “truth” about pet foods out there. Part of the truth is that no dog (or cat) was designed to eat processed dry kibble for every meal… or for any meal!
I won’t even get into the ethics of Purina/Nestle. Anyone who pays attention and who cares about living beings would not purchase their products, animal or human.
C Olson
April 16, 2015 at 3:26 pm
If it’s not healthy and good for them, then explain why every dog I have owned big & small has lived 15+ years!!
It can’t be that terrible,if they have all lived long and healthy lives. Why switch???
lili
April 16, 2015 at 3:57 pm
Oh, man, Big Pet Food has really got their people revved up pretending to be pet feed consumers! Is this your full time gig? How many profiles do you have? Do you sell reviews for yelp, too? Here, I’ll help you with your next comment “I feed Beneful to all of my dogs and cats and have always fed Purina foods. They are so cheap, and so healthy! My cats are 27 years old and have amazing coats and have never been sick a day in their lives! I have 3 Great Danes ranging in age from 9 to 13 years old and they are the picture of health. People ask me what I feed them, and many raw feeders are switching to Beneful because my dogs are so amazing! Why pay more when Purina is so great?”j
There, you can cut and paste that and save yourself some time.
Ann*
April 17, 2015 at 5:10 pm
WELL SAID lili
Susan Thixton
April 16, 2015 at 4:52 pm
Most of the people here have first hand experience at what changing their cat or dogs food to an actual food (not a feed) can do. I myself had a dog die from bone cancer my vet was assured was due to a chemical preservative that was once commonly used in pet food (including Purina – ethoxyquin). Once you learn this lesson the hard way, you try your best to prevent others from making the same mistakes.
Why switch? Well from someone that has learned the lesson the hard way – I know from personal experience what real food can do. And I’ve met and emailed with thousands of people who have had the same experiences.
What you might not be aware of is that pet food is regulated under feed law (as in livestock feed that is fed to animals on the ground and stored in barns in 50# bags). Feed does not have the requirement of being transported in clean conditions or under refrigeration – such as feed grade (otherwise known as pet grade) meat. Pet feed grade meat can be transported in the hot sun in an open dirty trailer. Food on the other hand has strict laws governing it. Food grade meat must be transported in clean conditions and under refrigeration. And this is only one difference between feed and food.
Feed ingredients are also allowed by FDA to be contaminated with pesticides and chemicals. Feed ingredients can be sourced from expired grocery food – no longer a sell-able nutritious product. Just about any waste is acceptable (per FDA) into feed.
Me personally – and many of the readers here – find this feed regulation of pet food unacceptable. Especially considering the misleading advertising and product labels. The choice is yours, you can choose to educate yourself to what is legally allowed in pet food/feed or not. We hope you choose education and hope you choose to provide your pets with food – not feed.
Mike L
April 16, 2015 at 6:09 pm
@ c olson – Yaawwnnn .. another BPF plant hoping newbies here will be influenced.
@ Newbies here – Make the time to read and learn. What do you have to lose? This site can open your eyes, help you understand and perhaps just as importantly, can assist you in forming your own questions to research.
@ Lili – Baaahahahaha .. perfect!
@ Ms. Thixton – Thank you.
Mike
Grateful
April 17, 2015 at 6:15 pm
Perfectly expressed Patti, thank you.
Regina
April 19, 2015 at 11:32 am
C Olsen, if you’re so pleased with ProPlan, answer me this. Those “shreds” in the bags, that are supposed to be shredded meat? Have you ever actually looked at one of those? I was somewhere and saw a bag of ProPlan that had spilled all over the floor. I picked up one of those “shreds” and pulled it apart with my fingers. It most definitely was NOT meat!!!!! It was very bready, very dry and bready, complete with the airgaps (holes) your would see in any bread product. Customers believe those things are actually pieces of shredded meat!
Please, C Olsen, come back and respond to this, and explain away this case of “stirring the pot”.
Of course, I’ll then just wonder if Purina will pay you overtime for following up on this.
Terri Janson
April 17, 2015 at 10:52 am
WELL said, Susan!!!!! Applauding loudly!!!! 🙂
Nouble
October 28, 2015 at 5:58 pm
Even if it’s the other way around, this’ll hopefully be a good thing. Purina produces some of the worst food you can buy for your beloved pet. Not only is there little meat (what’s ever are probably by-products), but I’ve read a lot of complaints from people saying it killed their pet. Also, other people have complained about finding bugs in the food.