Purina’s Commitment to Pets, People and the Planet

By Joe Toscano, Vice President, Trade & Industry Development at Purina

Sponsored by Nestlé Purina

At Purina, we are committed to pets, people and the planet we all share. You love your pets and want a safe and clean environment where you can play together for years to come, and so do we. That’s why Purina is committed to the safety and health of our pets, and to our planet. From the soil where our ingredients grow to our manufacturing facilities where our pet food is made, you can be confident that we’re using resources efficiently throughout the journey of your pet’s food.

How are we pursuing a more sustainable future? To start, we are working to reduce our greenhouse gas emissions by 50 percent by 2030 and striving for net zero greenhouse gas emissions by 2050. Purina is also transitioning away from paper FSIs and focusing instead on digital FSIs. In 2021, Purina’s FSIs were printed on 1.1 billion pieces of paper, which equals roughly 54,217 trees. For 2022, our Dog Chow, Friskies and Beyond brands have all committed to not running paper FSIs. If all of our brands fully transition to digital FSIs, we estimate we could save roughly 136 acres of forest while still offering our consumers great deals on their favorite pet products.

When it comes to sustainable business practices, we source ingredients responsibly and continuously work to reduce our energy, water and waste in our operations. Every ingredient in our food serves a purpose. We work to ensure it meets the nutritional needs of your pet. Purina is working with America’s farmers to assess the ongoing challenges facing their community and collaborating to help implement innovative approaches like regenerative agriculture to improve the health of the ecosystem and enhance overall production. Purina is working to help Nestlé source 20 percent of its key ingredients globally from regenerative farming by 2025. We also partner with leading national conservation organizations like The Nature Conservancy, Ducks Unlimited, and Pheasants Forever to promote  healthy ecosystems in sourcing regions complementing the work done by thousands of farmers.

Today, more than 80 percent of Purina’s product portfolio by weight is packaged in recyclable materials. We are working to optimize our packaging with the goal of making the remaining 20 percent reusable or recyclable by 2025. We are also working to incorporate more recycled content into our packages and eliminate unnecessary materials. For instance, our Tidy Cats Naturally Strong cat litter is available in 14 lb and 20 lb jugs that are made with 50 percent post-consumer recycled plastic, and Yesterday’s News clumping and non-clumping cat litters are made with recycled paper. The aluminum cans that our wet dog and cat food come in can be recycled endlessly, resulting in a significant decrease in waste. In fact, recycling 75 percent of all aluminum cans would prevent 11.8 million metric tons of CO2 emissions, which is why we are working on a program that encourages consumers to recycle their empty cans of wet food.

Why does this matter for your store? Research has shown that consumers are choosing brands whose values align with theirs, especially when it comes to sustainability. A September 2021 survey conducted by PwC showed about half of respondents said they consciously consider factors related to sustainability when making purchasing decisions.

You can learn more about Purina’s sustainability efforts by visiting purina.com/about-purina/cares. Please contact your Purina sales rep to discuss further and learn how you can get involved.

Purina trademarks are owned by Société des Produits Nestlé S.A