Nestlé Purina’s Fancy Feast is looking to premiumize feline food with “elevated” broth options as it expands into the “cat complements” category.

The Broths portfolio, Purina says, provides pets with an even greater variety of textures and flavour combinations, and it’s positioning Fancy Feast Broths as a foodstuff that can be fed on its own, as a snack between meals or as a topper to wet or dry food.

The format first launched at the beginning of 2021 and is expanding into seafood bisque flavours that will be in store by July.

The products themselves and the “Discover Wow” message that’s front-and-centre of their campaign may be relatively new, but reaching pet owners by promoting appetite appeal for their cats is a tried and true approach for the brand.

“Showcasing ‘bowl appeal’ is a key element of all Fancy Feast-branded communication,” says Jenn Terra, VP of marketing for Nestlé Purina PetCare Canada. “Pet owners visually recognize the quality, innovation and nutrition of our portfolio, and feel good about feeding it to their pet.”

Shopper elements that launched in May included large shelf banners running in the Pet Food Aisle of Loblaw banners across Canada. To drive trial, the shopper assets included a 500 PC Optimum points offer with purchase of single portions of the broths.

Key shelf talker communiques include being made with real poultry and fish, not having by-products or fillers and being portioned and ready to pour.

As Terra explains, cat complements is a relatively new segment within pet food, and as a result, requires strong in-store point of sale communication to educate cat food shoppers.

“Cat owners in particular are always looking for new ways to engage with their cats, seeking a variety of products to fulfill their neophiliac (novelty-seeking) needs,” Terra says. Part of this includes packaging that showcases beautifully plated bowl images.

Nestlé Purina PetCare Canada, Terra says, is committed to elevating the Fancy Feast portfolio through innovation, offering a wide selection of recipes, textures and formats for every feeding occasion, and driving trial during a time when pet ownership has increased along with demand for food.

“During lockdown there was also an increase in treating occasions, as owners and their pets spent much more time together,” Terra says.

The project management was executed by Purina’s internal Shopper Marketing Team. Creative adaptation was executed by For Position Only Prepress, and Neptune Retail Solutions produced the banners and executed the banners at shelf in stores.

According to the latest numbers from the Pet Food Association of Canada, 63% of households have a dog or cat, with a pet population of over 7.7 million dogs and 8.1 million cats. Also, the Association says the pet food sector is expected to have an average compound annual growth rate of 4.75% in Canada between 2021-25. 

In addition to Nestle Purina, J.M Smucker, Blue Buffalo, Mars Incorporated, and Colgate-Palmolive are key players in the pet space.