The quest for a hamburger more sustainable than a traditional beef patty is leading people also to look more closely at what they feed their pets, and several Bay Area startups are responding.
Conventional pet food has gotten a bad rap in recent years. Meat produced for human consumption creates a lot of waste from muscles, organs, bones and hides, and pet food traditionally reclaims at least some of those leftovers. And while the zero-waste "nose-to-tail" movement in restaurants conjures up positive images of sustainability, the industrial processing of livestock scraps fails to do likewise.
Meanwhile, awareness of the environmental impact of meat production has increased — and in 2018, pet food contributed to 25% of that impact, according to the Guardian.
It all adds up to more consumers demanding human-grade pet-food products with a lower carbon footprint, or "pawprint."
The options emerging for pets are as varied as they are for products being developed for human consumption.
While cats need to eat meat, dogs are omnivorous and can be fed vegetarian diets if "properly balanced," according VCA Animal Hospitals.
Not only are companies around the world developing plant-based formulas and lab-cultured chicken for pet food, some are also using insect protein and harvesting invasive fish species.
It's not clear yet if any of these alternatives are actually better for the planet and our pets.
The issue "mimics the same narrative in human food... Using insects is potentially an option, but it depends on what those insects are themselves consuming,” a researcher at the University of Edinburgh told Bloomberg News. “Similarly with cell-based meat alternatives, as there is a lot of energy use and infrastructure with associated costs and emissions, as well as questions about the production of the medium in which the cells are cultured.”
Globally, pet food sales reached $105 billion in 2021 and the vegan dog food market reached $12 billion that year, according to Bloomberg News.
Here are five Bay Area startups that are developing pet food alternatives (all funding data is from Crunchbase and PitchBook):
- Jiminy's (Berkeley) — Founded in 2016 by Anne Carlson, Jiminy's uses cricket protein in its dog food and treats. Raised an undisclosed amount in 2019.
- Petaluma (Oakland) — Founded in 2019 by Caroline Buck and Garrett Wymore, Petaluma makes plant-based dog food. Has raised around $500,000 in early funding.
- Pezzy (Berkeley) — Founded in 2018 by Michael Mitchell and Samarth Bordia, Pezzy (legally known as Acari LLC) uses an invasive fish species to produce its dog and cat treats. Has raised an undisclosed amount.
- V-Dog (S.F.) — Founded in 2005 by Darren Middlesworth, V-Dog produces vegan dog food. Has not raised outside funding.
- Wild Earth (Berkeley) — Co-founded in 2017 by CEO Ryan Bethencourt, Wild Earth started with plant-based products and is expanding into cell-cultivated beef, chicken and seafood for its dog food. Has raised around $49 million.
