Natural pet food maker moves into mass, grocery

WILTON, Conn. — Natural pet food maker Blue Buffalo — which has heretofore been only available at specialty pet retailers — is bringing its Blue Life Protection Formula line of products to mass and grocery stores.

In a letter filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission that was sent to existing retail partners, Blue Buffalo SVP North America sales Modestino “Dino” Mele said the company has begun shipments to Target, Kroger, Meijer and Publix, and expects it to be available in August.

“As the leading natural pet food company, Blue Buffalo has invested over $700 million to educate pet parents and build our mutual brands,” Mele said in the letter. “We have also invested significantly in product development to build five distinct product lines (LPF, Wilderness, Basics, Freedom, and Earth’s Essentials). We have decided that broadening the distribution of LPF, our entry-level natural pet food line, is the natural evolution of our go-to-market strategy.”

The company said that its focus in grocery and mass was on smaller bags, mainstream formulas and wet foods and treats from the LPF product line.