Visions - Spring 2009 - 15

Subsidiary - Hartz Healthy Smiles For Dogs & Cats Are Just a Crunch Away New Hartz Crunch ‘n Clean™ dog biscuits and cat treats expand the product line with patented technology aimed at pet dental woes A SCOA subsidiary since 2004, The Hartz Mountain Company has been a leader in the pet supply business for nearly a century. The company’s understanding of pets, the pet supply business, and its strong trade relationships keeps Hartz as the number one brand in pet supplies today. Seeing that the U.S. dog and cat treats’ business experienced over $1 billion in sales, Hartz is launching its newest products, Crunch ‘n Clean™ dog biscuits and cat treats, which contain ingredients that help keep a pet’s teeth clean and healthy. “Hartz does not currently compete in this category,” explained Tina LeLay, Hartz’s Senior Director Marketing for Dog/Cat Chews & Treats. “Consumers of biscuits, in particular, are loyal to this form of treat, so sales are 100% incremental to the current Hartz portfolio of functional chew treats. Moreover, this category offers higher turn and higher margins than many of the categories in which Hartz currently competes. Yet unlike dog and cat food, which is dominated by very large competitors with very high consumer support budgets, treats is a good progression between pet supplies and food.” “Our strategy is to enter new categories with products built on new technologies, new ways of applying existing technologies, and filling need gaps within the marketplace,” Lelay continued. “In the case of Crunch ‘n Clean™, we are leveraging a proprietary technology, currently being used in our growing Hartz Dentist’s Best® premium rawhide products, into a larger category to fill a key unmet need. The patented ingredient Dentashield®, delivers a unique tartar blocking benefit for cleaner teeth, a key driver in this category.” Most pet owners do not realize that dental disease is the most common disease among dogs and cats, and can affect their overall health. 80% of dogs and 70% of cats show some sign of oral disease by the age of 3 years old (see sidebar story on page 16). Pet parents are using biscuits and hard foods to clean their pet’s teeth, but those basic treats rely solely on the mechanical action of chewing alone to help remove tartar. Crunch ‘n Clean™ goes a step further to block tartar from forming in the first place with the patented Dentashield®, which results in cleaner teeth, healthier gums, and fresher breath. “There is significant opportunity to raise the speed and level of innovation in the dog biscuit and cat treats category, a category dominated by companies that have taken a slow and less than aggressive approach to delivering innovation,” LeLay said. This new product launch has Hartz hopeful that pet owners will embrace this chance to keep their pets’ smiles bright and healthy. For more information, please contact Kei Tokumitsu at Kei.Tokumitsu@sumitomocorp.com (Continued) Sumitomo Corporation of America 15
Visions - Spring 2009

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Visions - Spring 2009
