Meet Purl

Hey, it's Purl!

Hi world!

Two new flavors were added to our cat slider line, turkey and lamb. Although we had a mix of opinions from customers on which should be the next two, we ultimately went with the opinion of none other than an actual feline. Of course, we plan on adding more flavors to the line and soon everyone will be pleased, but this time around our feedback came from a very finicky source. 

Let us introduce you to one of the smallbatch head honchos, her name is Purl and she is quite delightful. She came to us from a litter of rescued cats and has been on raw food since she was weaned from her mother. She is athletic, incredibly sweet, head huntress, pillow warmer, a lover not a fighter. And she is by all means, a true finicky eater. We have another boss cat around who eats all of our flavors, including the dog batches and blends, complete opposite of little miss picky pants. 

Purl's favorite of the two new flavors is the lamb. We know, when on earth would a domestic cat take down a lamb out in the wild? Although we do try to mimic a prey diet let's face it, never would their food be perfectly formed into sliders and served to them on pretty little dishes, mother nature doesn't offer fancy dining. The lamb we use in all of our products is not only grass fed and free range, it is never placed in feedlots or given hormones or antibiotics. This is an incredibly important aspect for us when sourcing not only our lamb but also all our other proteins. Imagine lambs that forage and eat on green pastures the way nature intended. Because they graze for long distances on large open pastures they are lean fit and healthy. Their diet consisting of wild grasses, herbs and rich alfalfa fields making,  them rich in Omega-3 fatty acids, vitamin E and beta-carotene and much lower in fat than grain fed lamb. 

Sure, Purl likes the lamb sliders over the turkey ones, but that's because she's a red meat kinda girl. Our turkey also amazingly sourced, are never fed anything with animal by-products, GMO's, pesticides, chemicals, or synthetics and free of antibiotics and hormones. These turkeys, are allowed to roam in areas four times the size of commercial turkey ranches, they breed naturally, as well as run and even fly. Only healthy lean and nutritious turkeys here, full of amino acids, good lean protein, full of vitamins, and low in fat. 

For now, we can relax knowing we have pleased one finicky feline, but we know our work does not end here...there are many more to please and we will continue introducing new flavors! 

Rabbit News!

Our rabbit sales rep Dominic Moll and his two youngest sons.

In recent months we have come across some sourcing issues. Finding local rabbit has been increasingly difficult, so much that we have had to search outside California. We strive to source as much of our ingredients right here at home, but when sources become so scarce that it affects our ability to produce products, we're forced to find the next best thing. We feel that we've found something even better, and we didn't have to source from New Zealand or even China like you'll find in many other pet foods. 

Enter De Bruin Brothers from Oskaloosa, Iowa. We came across this wonderful company a while back at a family dinner, and when it came time to look for another rabbit source that was consistent with our demand and met our expectations of quality, we turned to them. De Bruin Brothers, are a small family owned company with many values... and they're fun to talk to. All of their rabbit come from small family farms that raise their rabbit on a diet of sweet alfalfa, oats, wheat and barley with no antibiotics or hormones ever. We welcome you to check out their website www.debruinbrothers.com and see what they're all about.  
If you have any questions or feedback for us, feel free to call or email us. 

Pacific Northwest

      

The many out-of-state inquiries are about to decrease...just a wee bit. This week, smallbatch has begun production in the Pacific Northwest. We have now expanded our business model, accommodating customers outside of the sunshine state. 

Yes, we're now proudly making batches in Oregon! Woo hoo! Sourcing our ingredients, producing and distributing there, as well as to neighboring states(mainly Washington). Pretty exciting and scary stuff. We never imagined being available outside of San Francisco(home to all smallbatch beginnings), let alone outside of California. Our main focus has always been to make products that are sourced and made locally, we did not want to deviate from our main mission and beliefs. By applying this principle we feel that we've managed to expand without compromising our ideals or our products. 

It's exciting to make new connections with farms and ranches as well as stores outside of California. Much like California, Oregon has a bounty of resources and everyone has been incredibly friendly and helpful with us making the expansion easy. Of course, none of this would ever be possible without the support from all our customers throughout the years. Thank you, we are forever grateful. 

chicken source

Mary and her family.

Some of the chickens on the Pitman Family Farm.

People often ask us about our sourcing and how we determine what farms and ranches we work with. Our criteria is always simple yet stringent. We work with local farms and ranches all who share the same beliefs and practices that we do. This not only guarantees the freshest and healthiest products, but also helps keep our california economy vibrant while helping to reduce your pet's carbon paw print. Okay, so who are these amazing sources?

Let's start with one and go over what they do and why they do it so well!

Here we go...

Let us introduce you to Pitman Family Farms. They are located in Sanger California near Fresno. They provide us with all of our poultry that goes into our chicken, turkey, and duck batches and blends. Their Mary's organic brand can be found in many natural grocery stores across the state and it's the same chicken that your dog or cat are eating when fed our products. Here's a little bit you should know about Mary's Organic chicken, we think you'll find their practices pretty darn awesome.

- All of their chickens are air chilled. This system inhibits the spread of bacteria also saves about 30,000 gallons of chlorinated water(a method typically used in the industry) from being used. The results are healthier and better tasting chicken.

-All of their chickens have outdoor access, with outdoor areas that always include water and shade. Natural chicken behaviors are encouraged by providing the chickens with bales of straw used by chickens for pecking. Also eucalyptus tree branches used by chickens for playing and hiding. Oh, those silly girls!

-All chickens have access to large grassy foraging areas, this encourages tons of running around under bright, warm sunny skies.

-Their chickens are of a slow growing breed a non-commercial type, these chickens have a stronger immune system and stronger bone structure.

-All chickens are  hand raised in small groups.

If you'd like to browse their site or call Mary, do it! Also, next time you're shopping for yourself make sure to look for Mary's chicken in your butcher aisle, they offer whole pre-packaged chickens along with pre-packaged chicken breasts. You'll really taste the difference.

new dog slider flavors!

Last week we sent out a poll asking our customers and retailers to help us choose the next two dog slider proteins. The final results are in.

The next two dog slider flavors are...drum roll...

Turkey and Duck!

Thanks to everyone who voted and helped us make this decision, your input and feedback is so important to us.

cat & dog sliders. there's a difference!

In the past months since launching our sliders, we've received a good amount of phone calls and emails in regards to these lil' one ounce-ers.

Now answering these popular concerns in the following Q & A format:

Q: I accidentally bought dog sliders instead of cat sliders(or vice versa)...how can I tell the difference between these two?

A. Ah, such a good question! Well, first off the dog image from our logo is located on the top left of the slider bag and although the image is animated it is indeed a dog (and same goes for the cat sliders). The other tell-tale sign is that right below the dog or cat image you'll see smallbatch and either the word 'cat' or 'dog' next to it.

Q: So I bought the wrong sliders. Can my dog eat cat sliders(um, and vice versa)?

A: The answer is, yes. Cat sliders are higher in protein, which means they contain a whole lot less veggies. And by a whole lot we mean a WHOLE lot. Cat sliders are about 1% produce(dandelion greens, cranberries, kelp) they do contain salmon oil, apple cider vinegar and grapefruit seed extract just like dog batches. Your dog would be getting a higher percentage of protein and a little variety in the dandelion and cranberry that they would normally not get from the dog sliders or patties. With that being said, dog sliders being fed to a cat is no cause for alarm. In this instance a cat would be receiving more veggies than necessary but as long as it is temporary it's actually a good thing. Your cat would be getting a little variety and benefiting from it. Now finish off the bag and pay closer attention next time!

Q: I counted each slider in the bag and did not find 48 one ounce sliders. What the heck?

A: Easy there, we're certainly not trying to cheat you out of a slider or two. Our slider bags read 'contains 48, 1oz. sliders (3lbs.)' in hindsight, the bag should read 'approximately, 48...' due to the variation in weight per slider...Ok, wait just know that you're definitely getting 3lbs. in every bag but unfortunately at times, 47 sliders tips the scale at 3lbs, sometimes 46 sliders do the same so we have to stop at that number. We apologize for that error and will definitely make changes as soon as we are ready to print more bags. Now please put the bag down, warm your frozen fingers and go have some fun.

Q: Are you going to launch other slider proteins? And if so, when?!

A: Patience my fellow raw food feeder. We are soon launching some more flavors, but please note that since we are a local company with an emphasis on using local proteins(from california), we are limited to the kind of exotics you might me thinking of(venison, buffalo, unicorn etc.) As soon as we are ready to bust out more slider flavors you will be the first one to know, we'll let everyone and their grandma know.

Ah, feels good to let it all out. Sure hope this helps sort out the slider mysteries.

The truth about HPP.

Many phone calls and emails have been pouring in, concerning HPP and whether or not we use it or have plans on implementing it to our processing. The answer is, no. We do not use HPP in our processing and are doing everything in our power to ensure that we continue to produce a true 100% raw product.

So what is good about HPP? Foods treated with HPP have a couple of key benefits. The first being an extended product shelf life and second, HPP is said to destroy harmful bacteria. So why all the overwhelming concern from everyone?

It turns out that while extending shelf life and killing potentially harmful bacteria, HPP also destroys all the friendly organisms that exist in raw food, these are also known as the good bacteria. These beneficial microorganisms are full of enzymes, they help keep colonies of pathogenic bacteria from multiplying quickly through a process called competitive inhibition (competing for growth). Once these friendly bacteria are destroyed during HPP, there is nothing to keep the pathogenic bacteria(bad bacteria) from growing out-of-control, if the product is re-contaminated during manufacturing or customer handling.

Say for instance, you leave your pet's food sitting out too long (come on, we've all done it, yeah even you!)chances are that if the food is treated with HPP it has a greater chance to make your pet sick than a food not treated with HPP. Why? Well when you leave raw meat out and allow it to warm to room temperature, you are essentially creating the optimal environment for bad bacteria to grow. Since the HPP treated food contains no friendly bacteria there is no way to combat the new outbreak of bad bacteria. Resulting in a contaminated food that will inevitably make your dog or cat sick. On the other hand, foods not treated with HPP would still have the good bacteria to put up a fight. The balance of good and bad is vital in keeping your pet's tummy from getting sick.

So let's review this quickly. Unprocessed raw food contains whole-food nutrition in a natural form that your pet's body can easily digest, absorb, metabolize, and eliminate. It contains beneficial bacteria, that not only aid digestion but also control the growth of pathogenic bacteria that could make your pet sick. Let's remember that cats and dogs have a gastrointestinal tract that is equipped to deal with traces of bad bacteria that are naturally present in raw meat. However, HPP in effect turns raw food into processed food,killing all the good and bad microorganisms simultaneously. Here in lies the potential for trouble.

At smallbatch we see no need for HPP because all of our ingredients are 100% traceable and locally sourced from farms and ranches that implement strict handling practices and testing procedures. We too have stringent processing procedures in place to alleviate any concerns of potential contamination. We process all of our diets in a USDA facility under strict regulation. We grind all of our meats at 27 degrees in a completely controlled environment. Once a patty is formed or a chub is filled the product is either put through a freeze tunnel or a into blast freezer. At no point in our processing procedure is there any possibility of a pathogenic bacteria outbreak. We feel it is our duty as a manufacturer of raw foods to be meticulous throughout the entire process. From the procuring of our ingredients to the processing of our formulas, smallbatch is dedicated to delivering the safest (real) raw food for dogs and cats!