Plant-based pet food brand Wild Earth has announced the launch of its first nutritionally complete vegan cat food.
Called Unicorn Pate, the wet food exceeds the requirements of AAFCO, an independent organization that sets standards for pet food safety and regulation. It contains ingredients such as lentils, peas, sweet potatoes, and marine microalgae, with added vitamins and minerals.
Unlike dogs, which are omnivorous, cats are considered to be obligate carnivores since they require nutrients not naturally found in plants. This includes taurine, an essential amino acid that cats cannot produce themselves and must get from their food. However, Unicorn Pate has been formulated to contain all the nutrients cats require without animal ingredients.
Good outcomes for vegan cats
The launch comes after a study published last year found good outcomes for cats fed a nutritionally complete vegan diet, including a 14.9% reduction in medication use, a 54.7% reduction in progression onto therapeutic diets, a 22.8% reduction in more severe illness, and a 7.3% reduction in veterinary visits.
“The pooled evidence to date from our study, and from others in this field, indicates that cats fed nutritionally sound vegan diets are healthier overall than those fed meat-based diets,” said study author Professor Andrew Knight.
Wild Earth’s plant-based food could also provide an option for cats with allergies to animal proteins such as chicken. These cats are often prescribed a plant-based diet, and the company hopes to “make plant-based options the first vs. the last choice” for clean, healthy pet food.
“We expect aggressive resistance”
Wild Earth was founded in 2017 with the aim of aligning pets’ well-being with sustainability and cruelty-free practices. The company appeared on Shark Tank in 2019, securing an investment from Mark Cuban.
Initially, Wild Earth focused on dog food, launching a koji-based dry kibble at Walmart in 2022. The brand then debuted a new core collection of plant and fungi-based dog kibble, available in several flavors, last year. A few months later, Wild Earth announced a partnership with Zeigler’s Distributor to expand its products across the US Mid-Atlantic region.
“Our team is incredibly proud to launch a new category leader that we hope will catalyze change in the entire pet food industry,” said Ryan Bethencourt, CEO of Wild Earth. “Nutritionally complete vegan cat food has been a long time coming, and we’re very thankful to be able to launch a whole new category of products which we think will transform cat nutrition and help make space for a kinder world for all animals.”
He added, “We expect aggressive resistance from the meat industry on the launch of this industry-pioneering vegan cat food, but we know there are A LOT of cat parents looking for healthier plant-based and more sustainable options and we want to be the leader in providing them with that choice.”
Unicorn Pate is now available from the Wild Earth website.