Innovation

Little Green Dog's hypoallergenic dog treats were released in 2023. Being made of a novel protein means that they are less likely to cause gut or skin reactions, allowing dog owners to treat their furry companions without worrying that it will flare up their allergic symptoms. They are about to be relaunched with a new more palatable formulation. The company has stated that, "We have to be constantly innovating to meet customer expectations and improve our sustainability. For example, not all dogs loved the previous formulation, so we've tweaked the ingredients based on customer feedback."

Once they had decided to release a dog treat, research of current trends in the market along with potential health and climate benefits that could be backed up led them to focus on insect proteins, and in particular black soldier fly larvae. The black soldier flies are grown in Malaysia, by a company that also grows for a Malaysian pet food manufacturer. They have in-house nutrition advisors which aided the development of the exact formulation. This ensured that the treats were nutritionally balanced and palatable to dogs. The business owner, Chris, claims, "So, it was quite a nice mix where because I don't have manufacturing experience, we were able to kind of work together in a sort of tri partnership to complete the product development and the manufacturing process... as an entrepreneur, I'm really clear on what I'm good at and what I'm not good at. And that’s really important, it's easy to get distracted from that or kind of stray into areas that you're not an expert in". As the plant is producing food for consumption by pets they have food safety standards in place, which allow little green dog to be comfortable with the safety of the product. This partnership aligns with sustainable development goal 17 - Partnership for the goals.

The soldier flies are fed "a plant-based diet. So essentially it is made from things that would otherwise go to landfill or lower value silage, compost." This aligns with sustainable development goal 12 - Responsible Consumption and Production. This, alongside being grown in a tropical climate to prevent the need for additional heating, dramatically reduces the carbon footprint of producing the protein. In addition, black soldier flies require significantly less land and water to produce compared to animal proteins and their methane production is a fraction of that of livestock. Therefore, the innovation also meets sustainable development goal 13 - Climate Action.

Alongside the treats themselves being better for the environment the packaging is partially made from recycled plastic and can be recycled through soft plastics recycling schemes. Further aligning with sustainable development goal 12 - Responsible Consumption and Production.

The innovative nature of a new product using insect protein to replace traditional protein sources aligns with sustainable development goal 9 - Industry, Innovation, and Infrastructure, whilst also bringing a new product to market, creating economic growth, and thus aligning with Sustainable development goat 8 -Decent Work and Economic Growth.

Inspiration

A dog owner himself, Chris, bought the company because he was "looking for a business that aligned with my values around sustainability and that could be grown to offer more sustainable products." At that point the little green dog poo bags had been around for a while, and compostable poo bags are now a common product across the market, so "the only option for us is horizontal expansion".

He was keen to develop the range of consumable products that the company produces, keeping in line with their environmental goals whilst also enabling the business to grow. As an entrepreneur he enjoys dreaming up and developing new products. The decision to make the new product a dog treat "came down to things that go into dogs as we'd already covered things that come out".

Once he had settled on the idea of developing a more environmentally friendly dog treat, he delved into the academic literature surrounding plant-based and other alternative protein sources to ensure that what he eventually produced could be shown to have demonstrable climate and health benefits. This was important because for Chris, "It's about the environmental side and the natural side" of his products and he wants to provide his fellow dog-owners with a product that aligns to their values and is enjoyed by their pets.

Overall impact

The development of the hypoallergenic dog treats has led to a new three-way partnership between little green dog, their black soldier fly larvae producer, and the Malaysian pet food company that also uses the supplier. The initial product development interviews had indicated that dog-owners in New Zealand would be interested in an insect protein-based treat, but until it was shown that the first batch could be pre-sold Chris could not be sure that this intent would match their actions.

"The first batch was really that demonstration of action, could we presale them? You know how would they go when we when we did sell them. And yeah, it really seems like there is no resistance from people around insect protein, especially once they start to understand the climate benefits and the health benefits as well".

The feedback from the first batch of customers showed that the product was liked by dogs, but could be made more palatable, so the second batch has had a reformulation to make it even more tasty. “We wanted to dial up that palatability."

Little green dog hypoallergenic dog treats are a reasonably new product in the premium pet treat market. They stand out through their use of a novel protein source and a strong value proposition. The value proposition provided to consumers is aided by having "as few additional elements as possible". An example of this is not using chemical preservatives. These characteristics are appealing to a different sector of the market than the more generic dog treats that can be found in supermarkets.

Business benefit

The hypoallergenic dog treats are an expansion of the business beyond poo bags. By producing a new innovative product, little green dog have expanded into a new area of the pet supplies market. Having more products available increases the revenue of the business which allows them to invest in new products, some of which are already undergoing product development.

The acceptance by dog-owners of a product containing insect protein opens the door to develop further products using novel proteins, allowing little green dog to continue their business expansion. The partnership that has been developed with the Malaysian companies to produce the treats allows access to product development and manufacturing opportunities that were not available in New Zealand. This has created the opportunity for further collaboration making new dietary products in the future.

Being able to produce products with a lower climate impact than traditional options provides Chris with satisfaction through meeting his own sustainability goals as well as providing consumers with a greater choice in available treats.

Although the little green dog poo bags are not a viable option for retailing in the US, the treats are currently undergoing certification for the US market. This market expansion will provide access to a much larger customer pool, which will mean they can achieve a sustainable volume to increase the manufacturing of the product and continue to expand their range.

Social and environmental benefit

Dog-owners enjoy giving treats to their dogs and are likely to continue to do so. Many dog treats are produced from animal proteins and consequently come with a considerable environmental footprint. Black soldier fly larvae have a considerably lower environmental footprint compared to traditional meat production as a result of requiring much lower land and water inputs. In addition, by being produced in a tropical climate, the black soldier fly larvae used by little green dog do not require additional heating, which they would require in a temperate climate. This results in less electricity or fossil fuel usage than would be needed outside the tropics. The food source provided to the insects prevents plant-based material from ending up in landfill and therefore reduces the methane that would be released through its decay. Little green dog has managed to produce insect-based treats that allow dog owners to continue to treat their animals but with a product that has a smaller impact on the environment than traditional treats.

If the use of insect-based treats such as these become normalised for dogs, it may help to persuade the pet owning public that insect-based pet foods are desirable. If insect-based complete diets were produced by pet food companies it could reduce the environmental impact of the pet food industry considerably. Furthermore, given the growing trend for owners to consider their pets part of the family, it may have the potential to influence what people would consider eating themselves.

Interview

Chris O'Neill, General manager