General Mills steps into the world of pet supplements

General Mills has announced the acquisition of dog and cat supplement company Fera Pets, marking the first acquisition by its new equity fund, Gold Medal Ventures.

The multinational hopes the supplement company will bring a “health-focused” dimension to General Mills’ pet portfolio. “The pet wellbeing category is on the rise, as more families look to take care of their pets the same way they take care of their own health,” says John Parrish, VP of Disruptive Growth at General Mills. 

For Fera Pets Co-Founder Michelle Dulake, General Mills’ scaling capabilities will help further their mission “to create better lives for pets and their families.”

Dulake added that the company will remain founder-led and that she will remain CEO.

Under the new deal, Fera Pets will become part of Gold Medal Ventures. This new venture arm was launched to own and strategically scale aligned businesses for future integration into General Mills’ portfolio. 

Business update 

In the 3 months ending August 2023, General Mills’ pet segment’s revenue fell flat, as the company posted net sales of $580 million (€542M).

Despite this, General Mills continues to say that its pet division is the company’s “fastest-growing” platform. 

General Mills acquired Tyson Foods’ pet treat business for $1.2 billion (€1.1B) in 2021. Earlier this year, General Mills confirmed it wanted to expand Blue Buffalo’s product portfolio in China.