Muenster Announces Launch of Kibble Plus Product

MUENSTER, Texas--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Muenster Milling Company (“Muenster”), a leading manufacturer of freeze-dried and extruded pet food, is excited to announce the launch of a new product format that will enable leading brands and retailers to address consumers' demand for high-nutrition pet food at an affordable price.

Muenster’s kibble plus offering combines the company’s three core manufacturing capabilities – including extruded kibble, freeze-dried proteins, and blending – into one format to further fuel the freeze-dried and kibble plus category, one of the fastest-growing segments of pet food. Retail sales for the segment were $1.2 billion in the 52 weeks ending July 2024¹, up 17% over the prior-year period.

Freeze-dried meals are an affordability challenge for millions of pet owners, with a retail price per pound averaging $36, compared to $2.50 for conventional kibble. Kibble plus creates a more affordable way for pet parents to provide the nutritional benefits of freeze-dried. Pet parents can affordably build a more nutritious bowl for their furry family members for a modest premium to regular kibble.

Jim Holdrieth, CEO of Muenster, said, “Given our unique capabilities to produce and blend both extruded product and freeze-dried inclusions, kibble plus became an obvious platform for us to address the needs of pet owners in this fast-growing segment. As the leading provider of co-manufacturing and private label development in the freeze-dried category, our capabilities offer leading brands and retailers the ability to mix and match kibble and freeze-dried in a logistically cost-effective manner. Additionally, our investment into industry leading quality standards and procedures gives brands the peace of mind knowing that we are basic on all manufacturing of the finished product.”

“We are excited to be a one-stop partner that can produce and blend kibble with freeze-dried inclusions for our customers,” said Dave DeLorenzo, Muenster’s VP of Sales, Marketing and Commercialization. “Our new freeze-dried facility has an advanced blending system that can combine multiple freeze-dried inclusions with various innovative shapes of kibble that ensures well-distributed, gently mixed food. Combined with our high-speed packaging solutions from 1oz samples to large bags, our customers can deliver a freeze-dried feeding experience at an accessible price point, providing significant value to pet parents.”

About Muenster Milling Company

Founded in 1932, Muenster Milling is a manufacturer of freeze-dried pet food, treats, and inclusions, as well as kibble. The Company provides contract manufacturing and private label solutions for leading brands and retailers at www.MMCprivatelabel.com. For customer or sales inquiries, please reach out to [e-mail].

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¹ Internal analysis from multiple industry sources.