NATURAgraph

NATURAgraph
N atura ’ s N e w s
for Our Pet Retailer Partners
w w w. n a t u r a p e t . c o m
attract plenty of attention with
prominently featured real ingredients in
a more streamlined, modern design. We’ve
trimmed down the extraneous details so
that your customers can concentrate on
what makes Innova special: use of whole,
fresh, high-quality ingredients, unique
nutritional benefits and peace of mind
that we produce our own dry products in
our state-of-the-art plant in Fremont, NE.
We will maintain version color to help
your store’s current Innova feeders locate
the formula that’s right for their pet,
quickly and easily.
Enhanced
Innova
Formulas
PAGE one
Successful
Weight
Management
PAGE two
Seeing
Beyond
the bag
The new formulas and new look will drive
plenty of interest, and our out-of-store
support will ensure that curiosity
translates into foot traffic in your store.
Print ads running from September
® through June will be placed in pet and
natural lifestyle publications such as Dog
Fancy, Cat Fancy, Animal Wellness, City
Dog, Natural Health, Yoga Journal and
Organic Gardening. A digital campaign
involving social media, search marketing,
web ads and updates to the See Beyond
the Bag site will help generate buzz about
the new Innova products and where
customers can purchase them.
PAGE three
Businessbuilding
basics
PAGE four
Giving Back
to Pets
PAGE five
AnotHer win
for evo
PAGE six
Coupon
Guidelines
PAGE seven
Newest Sales
Team Member
PAGE seven
2
/3RD
ND
QUARTER
2012
Nutrition in Every Color: Innova
is Enhanced for the Health of Pets
At Natura, it’s our responsibility to bring
nutritional innovation to market in
support of dogs and cats. To do this, we
commit ourselves to making significant
investments in the key components that
make true innovation possible — cuttingedge nutritional research and the
technology to bring that nutrition to
market in the form of healthy pet food.
We’re proud to announce that new,
upgraded Innova products began shipping
into market in late July. These new
formulas include 100% whole grains, and
we’ve removed white rice and potatoes.
We’ve added more poultry and fish to select
formulas1, as well as a greater variety of
fruits and vegetables, including pears,
blueberries, green beans and parsnips.
We’ve also modernized our nutritional
approach for senior dogs by including
increased protein levels and fat
guarantees in accordance with the latest
nutritional research for this important
life stage. Our low fat dog and cat
formulas have been enriched and
renamed “Weight Management.” This
better reflects their full spectrum of
benefits, including enhanced nutrients
for active weight loss to allow pet parents
to feed less without sacrificing nutrient
levels, as well as added L-carnitine, fiber
from whole grains, and reduced fat.
Palatability is impressive across the
board, with significant improvements
for Adult Dog Senior Dog and Senior
Plus formulas.
We know that pets will enjoy our
improved formulas, but your customers
will also appreciate Innova’s newly
refreshed packaging! The new look will
We are also offering in-store tools to help
facilitate transition and drive decision
making. These include persuasive, colorful
POS materials and an offer of a free fleece
pet blanket with the purchase of specially
packed 6 lb. formulas of Innova Dog or Cat
Food. Each blanket will also include a
bounce back coupon for $7 off any Innova
dog formula 25 lbs. or larger or $6 off any
Innova cat formula 12 lbs. or larger.
Our innovation is your store’s
differentiation. If you have any
questions, please contact your Natura
Sales Representative or reach out directly
to our dedicated Product Advisor team at
(800) 532-7261.
1 Applies to Adult Dog, Senior Dog, Senior Plus Dog,
Weight Management Dog, Large Breed Puppy, Large Breed
Senior Dog, Cat, Kitten, and Weight Management Cat diets
//////////////////////////////////////
Technical Bulletin
The Three R’s of
Successful Weight
Management
By Sally Perea, DVM, MS, DACVN,
Senior Nutritionist, Sean Delaney DVM,
MS, DACVN, and Nathaniel Cook, DVM,
Technical Services Veterinarian
Recognize
PAGE
two
At least one third of dogs and cats in
the United States are overweight or
obese.1, 2 These extra pounds are not
simply a cosmetic concern, but a serious
health problem that increases the risk of
multiple health concerns and reduces
life expectancy.3, 4 Recognition of a
problem is the first step towards
resolution, and education about the
problems associated with being
overweight or obese is very important.
Keeping lean is vital to both the quality of
life and the lifespan of our beloved pets.
shed a few pounds or they just
struggle to maintain a healthy weight.
• Natura includes feeding guidelines for
weight loss (20% restriction) and
weight maintenance on the package
of all Weight Management formulas.
Restriction to 80% of daily maintenance
caloric needs is a starting point for
weight loss. Your veterinarian or pet care
professional can assist you in calculating
your dog or cat’s expected daily caloric
needs. Keep in mind that treats and other
foods given outside of mealtimes will also
need to be taken into account when
considering total caloric intake per day.
• Calorie statements are included on all
Natura labels to help pet parents
easily determine the appropriate
amount of food to feed all their pets
whether overweight or not.
made from amino acids, and during
a restricted feeding study in cats,
it was shown to increase the rate of
weight loss.5
– L-carnitine also helps to facilitate
the metabolism of fat for energy
rather than storage.6, 7, 8
– Natura Weight Management
formulas include L-carnitine to give
dogs and cats additional nutritional
support toward their weight loss
and maintenance goals.
• Protein
– Higher levels of dietary protein
have been shown to promote fat
loss and to aid in maintaining lean
muscle mass during weight loss in
both dogs and cats.9, 10
Pet parents should go beyond weighing their
pet and also determine a Body Condition
Score (BCS) as the best assessment of
whether a weight loss plan is needed.
• To determine your dog or cat’s BCS,
refer to an official body condition
scoring chart. If you are concerned
that your pet is under or overweight,
please consult with your veterinarian
or pet care professional.
• BCS charts are included on the package
of every Natura dry food to provide
guidance on what an appropriate body
condition looks and feels like.
Restrict: Nutritional
Strategies for Weight Loss
and Maintenance
All successful weight loss plans start
with the selection of an appropriate
diet to feed during caloric restriction
and active weight loss.
• Natura’s Weight Management formulas
provide excellent options for dogs and
cats to help achieve an ideal body
condition — whether they need to
• Using a standard “kitchen” measuring
cup, such as Natura’s eight fluid
ounce cups available at some
independent retailers, also helps to
ensure that the appropriate amount
of food — and calories — are fed.
• Nutrient Enhancement
– Micronutrients should be increased
in weight loss foods because when
a restricted amount of a typical
maintenance food is fed for weight
loss, essential vitamins and
minerals can become deficient.
– All essential nutrients in Natura
Weight Management foods have
been safely Nutrient Enhanced™ to
a minimum of 125%, allowing
restriction of energy while still
meeting important nutrient needs.
• L-carnitine
– L-carnitine is a natural supplement
– Higher dietary protein has also
been shown to improve satiety (the
sensation of fullness) and to
increase energy expenditure in
dogs and cats — so they can be
satisfied eating less while actually
burning more calories.11, 12
– Natura uses only high quality
animal protein sources, and EVO®
Weight Management formulas
include ultra-high protein levels for
those dogs and cats who can
benefit from this approach to
achieving ideal body condition.
• Dietary Fiber
– Dietary fiber does not contribute
significant calories for dogs and
cats, so it can help to reduce the
caloric density in food.
– Moderate levels of dietary fiber
may help to increase feeling and
Have You Seen
Beyond the Bag?
More than ever, you and your
shoppers want to know where pet
food is made and where ingredients
come from. At Natura, we proudly
invest in our own manufacturing and
product development capabilities so
that we can maintain industry
leading standards and provide you
and your shopper complete
transparency for their pet’s health
and their owners’ peace of mind.
Reassess
Continual monitoring and reassessment
are essential for successful weight loss
and management. Pets should be
monitored on a biweekly basis to ensure
that they are achieving healthy weight
loss goals. A weight loss rate of 1-2% of
To see more, visit www.SeeBeyondTheBag.com
////////////////////////////////////
DID YOU KNOW?
A weight loss rate of 1–2% of body
weight per week is appropriate,
but achieving 0.5% per week should
also be considered a success.
body weight per week is appropriate,
but achieving 0.5% per week should
also be considered a success. Rapid
weight loss of >2% per week is
concerning and warrants re-evaluation
of the diet plan.
Pet parents should enter into a weight
loss plan with the understanding that
three
duration of satiety after eating in
dogs; however, high levels of
dietary fiber have not been shown
to provide a further benefit.13 In
addition, high dietary fiber levels
can have a negative impact on
nutrient digestion and absorption
as well as skin and coat quality.14
You can trust Natura to provide
transparent, up-to-date information
about our practices. We won’t
compromise on safety or nutrition.
PAGE
As you speak to your customers about
the enhanced Innova® formulas or
other Natura products, consider
recommending our new See Beyond the
Bag site (www.SeeBeyondTheBag.com),
an invaluable tool for communicating
the high-quality ingredients and strict
manufacturing standards that are
embodied in each bag of Natura pet food.
The new Innova formulas have
been added to the site and include
the regions where all of the new
ingredients are sourced. As always,
visitors to the site will be able to
view a narrated video tour of our
Fremont plant, read profiles of
employees working in manufacturing
and product development, and view
the safety and quality checks that
take place at our plant.
adjustments in initial feeding amounts
will likely be required, and that slow
and steady progress will provide the
healthiest and most sustainable result.
As with any major health decision,
consultation with your pet’s
veterinarian will help to ensure that
there are no other health conditions to
consider and that the weight loss and
management plan will be safe and
effective. After achieving ideal body
condition, it is often best to continue
feeding a Weight Management formula
to help keep the weight off.
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1 Lund EM et al. Prevalence and risk factors for obesity in adult dogs from private US veterinary practices. Intern J Appl Res Vet Med 2006; 4(2): 177-86.
2 Lund EM et al. Prevalence and risk factors for obesity in adult cats from private US veterinary practices. Intern J Appl Res Vet Med 2005; 3(2): 88-96.
3 German AJ. The growing problem of obesity in dogs and cats. J Nutr 2006; 136: 1940S-46S.
4 Kealy RD et al. Effects of diet restriction on life span and age-related changes in dogs. JAVMA 2002; 220: 1315-20.
5 Center SA et al. The clinical and metabolic effects of rapid weight loss in obese pet cats and the influence of supplemental oral L-carnitine. J Vet Intern Med 2000; 14: 598-608.
6 Ibrahim WH et al. Effects of carnitine and taurine on fatty acid metabolism and lipid accumulation in the liver of cats weight loss and decreased adiposity in the canine. Proceedings of the
XXIII World Small Animal Veterinary Association; 1998: 746.
7 Sunvold GD et al. Carnitine supplementation promotes weight loss and decreased adiposity in the canine. Proceedings of the XXIII World Small Animal Veterinary Association; 1998: 746.
8 Hannah SS, Laflamme DP. Increased dietary protein spares lean body mass during weight loss in dogs. J Vet Int Med 1998; 12: 224.
9 Laflamme DP, Hannah SS. Increased dietary protein promotes fat loss and reduces loss of lean body mass during weight loss in cats. Intern J Appl Res Vet Med 2005; 3(2): 62-8.
10 Weber et al. A high-protein, high-fiber diet designed for weight loss improves satiety in dogs. J Vet Intern Med 2007; 21: 1203-08.
11 Vasconcellos RS et al. Protein intake during weight loss influences the energy required for weight loss and maintenance in cats. J Nutr 2009; 139: 855-60.
12 Bosch G et al. The effects of dietary fibre type on satiety-related hormones and voluntary food intake in dogs. British Journal of Nutrition 2009; 102: 318–25.
13 Butterwick RF et al. Effect of level and source of dietary fiber on food intake in the dog. J Nutr. 1994; 2695S-700S.
14 Jewell DE, Toll PW. Effects of fiber on food intake in dogs. Vet Clin Nutr 1996; 3: 115-8.
Business-Building Basics:
Making the Most
of the New
Facebook Layout
To see how
Natura is
using the
new Timeline
features to our
(and your!)
advantage,
become a fan!
PAGE
four
www.facebook.com/
calnatpet
www.twitter.com/
calnatpet
www.facebook.com/
innovapet
www.twitter.com/
innovapet
by Tammy Barker, Natura Social Media
Community Manager
Natura’s commitment to
innovation is expanding
and driving store traffic
through social media.
The new “Timeline” layout, which was
introduced for businesses in March, was
designed by Facebook to provide a more
personal experience for users. It allows
them to more easily engage with the
brands and businesses they follow.
You may have noticed that Natura has
taken steps to transition the Innova®,
EVO® and California Natural® Facebook
pages to make the most of the new
features offered by Timeline. Some of
the changes you may have noticed:
• Cover Photos — A striking design
here can make a strong visual first
impression on page visitors. It can
also be used to express your
business’s personality.
• Milestones — A business can honor
its rich history, calling out important
dates such as its founding, product
launches, new buildings or special
announcements.
www.facebook.com/
evopetfood
www.twitter.com/
evopetfood
• Admin Panel — This new panel drops
down when clicked, displaying
notifications, a list of recent
messages, new “Likes” and a snapshot
of data about how fans are engaging
with the page.
• Activity Log — This feature allows
you to view every post your page has
ever published, as well as posts from
fans about your posts.
• Private Messages — Businesses now
have the ability to send private
messages with users and fans
(but only when a user/fan initiates
the conversation).
Your store can benefit from these new
updates. Building a customized Timeline
page for your business will not only
help to build awareness of your
business’s unique identity on the web, it
will also help drive more traffic and
boost sales. When creating your brand
page in the new Timeline format, keep
the following tips in mind:
• Do not use a cover photo as an
advertising mechanism to share
pricing or purchasing info, contests,
or prompts to like or share. Facebook
considers calls to action (like “get it
now” or “tell your friends”) to be
cover photo violations.
• Tabs and apps are now featured under
the cover photo, four at a time. Tabs
and apps can swap positions
depending on which you would like to
highlight. For example, a contest app
could be given prominence during a
special campaign.
• To call out specific posts, “pin” them
to the top of your Timeline by
selecting the pencil icon in the upperright corner of your post. Once a post
has been selected as “pinned” it will
remain there for seven days.
• Another option is to “highlight” a
post so that it expands across the
page. To highlight a story, hover over
it and select the star button.
• You can’t change the default landing
view for your brand page. People will
always see the Timeline view of your
page when they go to your page’s main
URL. However, you can send customers
and fans a link that will take them
directly to a particular app on your
Page. To alert people of contests or
apps, simply copy the URL from the
web address bar of your browser when
you visit that page or app.
For more tips and tricks, visit the Facebook
Help Center at www.facebook.com/help.
//////////////////////////////////////
Hope and family
Nanuk
PAGE
Giving Back to Pets
Boss
To learn more about Tails of Hope,
please visit www.tails-of-hope.org.
//////////////////////////////////////
Consistent with our goal of enhancing
the lives of all pets, Natura is
committed to bettering the lives of
family dogs and cats. That includes pets
who have not yet found homes or who
are in the need of assistance.
//////////////////////////////////////
Maryland-based Tails of Hope Sanctuary
provides care for animals who can no
longer be housed at shelters due to
overcrowding, correctable health
concerns or behavioral issues. Through
a network of foster homes, Tails of
Hope rehabilitates animals behaviorally
and nutritionally until they are ready
to find families of their own. Natura
participated in three of the
organization’s fundraising events in the
Northeast region this year, helping to
raise funds at unprecedented levels.
A news item captured the attention of our
staff back in February: Seven dogs had
been found abandoned inside a storage
unit belonging to a Fremont, Nebraska
couple. This story would be tragic
anywhere, but it was especially wrenching
to hear that it had taken place in Natura’s
hometown. Miraculously, the animals,
including those pictured here, survived
and were taken to the local shelter to
await adoption. That’s when our staff
took action. Tammy Barker, our social
media community manager, coordinated
our efforts to assist these animals. Upon
adoption of each dog, their new families
were provided with complimentary
wellness checkups.
//////////////////////////////////////
Tornadoes tore through the Midwest in a
string of violent storms between March 2
and 3. When the storms finally relented,
it was revealed that towns had been
leveled across the Ohio Valley, dozens of
fatalities had occurred, and a countless
number of pets had been displaced from
their homes. Within the week, Natura,
Iams and Eukanuba contributed 15 tons
of pet food to relief workers. These
provisions supported the inspirational
Tri-State County Animal Response Team
(C.A.R.T.). C.A.R.T.’s volunteers sprang
into action immediately after the
disaster to organize the rescue and
return of animals to the families from
which they had been separated. C.A.R.T.
does this by setting up temporary
housing, caring for recovered pets, and
facilitating their return to family life. If
you would like to learn more about
C.A.R.T.’s mission or what you can do to
help their efforts, please visit their
website at www.tristatecart.com.
//////////////////////////////////////
five
Bud and family
Another Win for EVO®:
Meet Blue Fin!
In last quarter’s issue you met Fifi, a
Doberman Pinscher who made it all the way
to the Best in Show round of Westminster
in February. This quarter we’d like to
introduce you to Blue Fin, another
champion canine enjoying an EVO diet.
Blue Fin wows crowds at canine aquatics
competitions with his awesome air tricks
and fast-fetching talents. Most recently,
Blue Fin stole the show at the DockDogs
competition in West Palm Beach. Brian
King of DockDogs praised Blue Fin’s
performance, writing, “The high flying Fin
took the win with a leap of 23 feet even!”
According to Fin’s owner, this amazing dog
can now boast three first place finishes in
DockDogs Elite Pro Finals.
PAGE
six
We’re proud that Blue Fin is a member of
the EVO team, and wish him the best of
luck at the DockDog World Championships
this November!
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Blue Fin
Natura Updates
Coupon Guidelines to
Protect Your
Business
At Natura, we do everything we can to
prevent counterfeiting of coupons,
which can harm your business and ours.
To assist in this process, we’ve invested
in the implementation of several
coupons changes.
Current Natura New Natura coupons
coupons contain: will all contain:
• All brands
• All species
• A single brand • Bar codes
• A single species • Copy stop
(Example: “$4.00 Off any Innova dog food 12-lb or larger”)
The sad truth is that the internet and
social media have made it easier to
share counterfeit coupons. However,
these vehicles have also made it easier
to track fraud. Natura works to identify
counterfeiters through eBay, third party
internet monitoring and coupon
websites, as well as consumer and
customer tips, RMS, and third party
investigators, among other tactics.
Here’s how you can help:
• Never tape coupons to products.
• Never place coupons on a hook or lay
them on the shelf by the product for
the customer to pick up.
• Never hand out coupons at the
register when the customer buys a
product.
• Never post a digital or a .pdf image of
a coupon online.
Here are a few helpful tips for
identifying counterfeit Natura coupons:
• Natura/P&G does not issue any
coupons that can be printed on
home computer equipment.
Companies that issue print at home
coupons typically limit the values to
$3 or less.
• Natura/P&G does not distribute
coupons through email or PDF files.
• Valid Natura/P&G coupons are
high-quality, color and printed on
high quality paper stock. If the print
quality is poor, edges or borders are
uneven, printed in black and white, if
the word “VOID” is visible or words
are misspelled, the coupon is a likely
counterfeit.
Thank you for your continued support
as we work to drive our mutual growth!
//////////////////////////////////////
PAGE
We never provide print-at-home coupons
or discount/promotion codes, which
could enable a violation of our “one
offer per consumer” policy. Unsupervised
coupon vehicles, such as tear pads or
on-pack coupons are also prohibited
because they encourage mishandling.
Circle These Dates
on Your Calendar
Aug 5–11: International Assistance Dog Week
Support a local service dog organization by donating
a portion of proceeds earned from sales. Promote the
event on your website or social networks to drive
traffic into the store.
Last Full Week in September: Deaf Pet
Awareness Week (Petfinder)
Offer special discounts to owners with deaf pets, or
provide educational materials to encourage adoption
of the many deaf dogs and cats living in shelters.
Natura Welcomes
New Sales Team
Member
Please welcome the newest member of our sales team,
Maxim Korenkov! Maxim will work with our Canadian
retailers. We’re proud to have him on board.
//////////////////////////////////////////////////////
seven
Note: There are currently Natura coupons in the market that
have different redemption instructions for our retailer. Please
pay special attention to the “DEALER or RETAILER” section on
the coupon before sending in for redemption.
NATURA graph
Natura Pet Products
2779 Rademakers Way
Fremont, NE 68025
“Innova”, “EVO”, “California Natural” are registered trademarks of Natura Pet Products, Inc.
All other trademarks are the property of their respective owners. ©2012 Natura Pet Products, Inc.
Key stories in this issue:
•Natura Updates Coupon Guidelines
to Protect Your Business
•Have You Seen Beyond the Bag?
•Technical Bulletin: The Three R’s
of Successful Weight Management
•Nutrition in Every Color:
Innova® is Enhanced for the Health of Pets
•Another Win for EVO®
NATURAgraph
N atura ’ s N e w s
for Our Pet Retailer Partners
w w w. n a t u r a p e t . c o m
2 /3
ND
NUTRITION IN EVERY COLOR
RD
QUARTER
2012