Scratch has become Australia’s first B-Corp certified dog food company, and only the fifth in the world.
B-Corp measures how consciously a business makes its products, from how it treats its staff to the processes its suppliers to operating sustainably.
Mike Halligan, Co-Founder of Scratch, said it is important to not ignore the environment and earth’s resources when making a product.
“There are more than enough old companies with profit as the only driver and that’s unlikely to change anytime soon. It’s on newer brands to operate with more than just profit in mind and hopefully open up supply chains and consumer expectations that drag the big old companies to a more sustainable future.”
Halligan pointed to the labeling ethics and consumer transparency within the pet food industry as an area that needs radical improvement.
“As a product that most dogs eat day in, day out – it’s vital for dogs health that the average dog owner can easily compare the key health markers and food content of anything they’re want to feed their dog.
“Unless they feed raw or feed Scratch, no Aussie dog owner right now has any idea whether their food contains 8 per cent of the meat promoted on the packet, or 30 per cent. They have no idea where meat or any other ingredient for that matter comes from, what part of it, how it’s treated and what it means for their dogs health.”
Halligan said that brands name things differently, invent claims, weigh things differently to manipulate ingredient lists, and all other sorts of tricks, and that it is something that needs to be changed as soon as possible.
In a statement on their website, Scratch, who suffered AusPost setbacks last year, said in 2021 they managed to raise over $100,000 to donate towards climate action and dog welfare through their Paws for the Planet program.
Over the past year, Scratch has managed to carbon offset 100 per cent of last-mile deliveries, launch two new local warehouses, launch biodegradable compostable poop bags, and create 93 per cent of items using recyclable packaging.
“The Scratch book of business is pretty simple. Do whatever the opposite of ‘globodogfood’ do. The planet and your dog will be better off for it. Not sure why we’re telling you – you’re already doing more than your bit!”