MINNEAPOLIS — On June 23, General Mills announced two new launches within its North America Pet segment. Its Blue Buffalo brand is expanding into fresh pet food and its European brand Edgard & Cooper is launching in the United States. 

Blue Buffalo is making its debut in the fresh pet food segment with the national launch of “Love Made Fresh.” According to General Mills, this launch aims to meet the growing trend of pet parents looking for fresh pet food, as well as a preference for mixing fresh with kibble and other formats. 

“Love Made Fresh” will feature multiple formats and a variety of recipes, designed to be a standalone fresh solution or a companion to dry dog food. With this launch, Blue Buffalo will represent the largest US pet food brand to offer solutions across dry, wet and fresh feeding, according to General Mills. “Love Made Fresh” is set to arrive in stores nationwide later this year. 

Following its acquisition of Edgard & Cooper in April, General Mills will launch the European premium pet food brand in the United States this July through an exclusive retail partnership with PetSmart. The US launch will feature the brand’s range of dry and wet food, as well as treats made with real, whole ingredients. The national PetSmart launch will leverage Edgard & Cooper’s digital-first, social-led marketing approach and further PetSmart’s position in the super-premium segment, according to General Mills. 

“Pet parents are redefining how they feed and treat their pets, and at General Mills, we’re listening and continuing to bring trusted, high-quality natural solutions to a rapidly evolving marketplace,” said Liz Mascolo, segment president of North America Pet for General Mills. “These moves position us to lead in both scale and innovation across the pet food aisle, with offerings that appeal to the fastest growing demographic in the category — young pet parents.”

These expansions are part of General Mills’ Accelerate strategy to drive long-term growth. 

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