Purina Dog Chow
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Nestlé Purina Petcare's Headquarters
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| Subsidiary | |
| Industry | Pet food |
| Predecessor | Ralston Purina |
| Founded | December 12, 2001 St. Louis, Missouri, U.S. |
| Headquarters | 800 Chouteau Ave, St. Louis, Missouri, U.S. |
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Area served
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Worldwide |
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Key people
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| Products |
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| Brands |
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| Revenue | $11.2 billion (2013) |
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Number of employees
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17,500 (2012) |
| Parent | Nestlé S.A. |
| Website | purina |
Nestlé Purina Petcare is a St. Louis, Missouri-based subsidiary of Nestlé. It produces and markets pet food, treats and litter. Some of its pet food brands include Purina Pro Plan, Purina Dog Chow, Friskies, Beneful and Purina ONE. The company was formed in 2001 by combining Ralston Purina, which was acquired by Nestlé for $10.3 billion, with Nestlé's Friskies Petcare Company. As consumers became willing to spend more money on their pets, the company grew. As of 2012, it is the second-largest pet food company globally and the largest in the United States.
In 2007, Nestle Purina voluntarily recalled some of its products after a widespread contamination was discovered in the pet food industry, due to ingredients from China. The company has been recognized for sustainability practices in its manufacturing and sponsors many pet-related charities and events. It markets its pet food through crowd-sourced competitions, sponsorship, mobile apps, and television advertising.
Nestlé Purina Petcare was formed in December 2001, when Nestlé acquired Ralston Purina for $10.3 billion and merged it with Nestlé's pet food business, Friskies PetCare Company. Ralston, which started as a horse-feed business in 1894, had marketed the Dog Chow, Cat Chow and Pro Plan pet food brands, while Nestlé produced Friskies and Alpo brand pet foods.
The merger was opposed by consumer advocates, such as the Consumer Federation of America, due to anti-trust concerns. The two companies combined would become the largest pet food brand by market-share with a 45 percent share of the cat food market. The Federal Trade Commission approved the merger after the Meow Mix and Alley Cat brands from Ralston were sold to J.W. Childs Equity Partners, creating the separate Meow Mix Company. Ralston's St. Louis, Missouri location was chosen as the new company's North America headquarters.
Nestlé Purina Petcare continued integrating the two companies through 2002. It cut back dry dog food manufacturing at facilities inherited from Friskies PetCare Company in Jefferson, Missouri, St. Joseph, Missouri and Arden Hills, Minnesota, then moved those operations to manufacturing facilities acquired from Ralston. Expanded manufacturing facilities were planned in Dunkirk, New York and the St. Joseph location was later expanded for wet-food production. In Asia it shifted from a "dealer system" to managing its own distribution. In 2004 Nestlé Purina merged its North American and Latin America operations into a Nestlé Purina PetCare Americas division.
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Wikipedia