Nature’s Variety
Nature's Variety, operating through its Instinct brand, manufactures and sells premium raw, fresh, frozen, and freeze-dried dog and cat food via DTC e-commerce, pet specialty, and general retail channels across the United States.
- Company typePrivate
- Founded2005
- HeadquartersSaint Louis, United States
- Headcount501–1,000
- GTM typeB2C
- OfferingHardware or Manufacturing
What Nature’s Variety does
Nature's Variety is a Saint Louis, Missouri-based privately held pet food company founded in 2005 that manufactures and sells premium raw, fresh, and minimally processed dog and cat food under its consumer-facing Instinct brand. The company's core technology is its multi-format raw processing capability, which produces FreshRaw Meals (refrigerated fresh), Frozen Raw Meals (minimally processed, never cooked), and FreshDried (freeze-dried, shelf-stable) SKUs, complemented by Boosted Kibble, RawBoost Mixers, Raw Coated Kibble, Toppers, Wet Food, and Kibble formats that allow pet owners to layer raw nutrition into any feeding routine without committing to an all-raw diet.
Nature's Variety generates revenue through one-time sales of branded pet food products distributed via three channels: direct-to-consumer e-commerce at instinctpetfood.com (supported by a FreshRaw Meals loyalty program with tiered 'Buy More, Save More' discounts), pet specialty retail storefronts, and general retail. Pricing is not publicly disclosed but the brand positions itself in the premium segment with comparable pricing to other fresh pet food brands and a 15-35% premium over conventional kibble implied by the raw/fresh category dynamics. The target customer is pet parents who treat pets as family members and prioritize natural, high-protein nutrition for pets with food sensitivities or digestive issues.
The company operates with 501-1,000 employees and received a strategic investment from Spanish food conglomerate Agrolimen in July 2014. Its go-to-market blends product-led growth (product recommender and feeding calculator tools) with content marketing (Instinct University, Science of Raw, vet professional channel, customer testimonials) to drive raw-diet adoption across dog and cat owners. Founder Bob Milligan remains associated with the company, and R&D is led by Julianne Kopf.
Nature’s Variety firmographics
Firmographics- Name
- Nature’s Variety
- Website
- https://naturesvariety.com
- Company type
- Private
- Founded year
- 2005
- Headcount range
- 501–1,000 employees
- Short description
- Nature's Variety, operating through its Instinct brand, manufactures and sells premium raw, fresh, frozen, and freeze-dried dog and cat food via DTC e-commerce, pet specialty, and general retail channels across the United States.
- Ownership category
- akta.pro rank
Nature’s Variety industry classification
Industry- Product category
- Pet Food
- NAICS
- Dog and Cat Food Manufacturing (311111), Pet and Pet Supplies Retailers (459910)
- SIC
- Food And Kindred Products (2000)
- akta.pro primary industry
- Frozen & Raw Pet Food (incl. freeze-dried) (CRADAFAD)
- akta.pro secondary industries
- Raw & Fresh Pet Food (Refrigerated/Frozen) (AFADAFAE), Functional & Veterinary Diet Pet Food (CRADAFAF), Dry Pet Food (Kibble) (AFADAFAA)
Keywords
Where Nature’s Variety is headquartered
LocationHeadquarters
- HQ city
- Saint Louis
- HQ country
- United States
- HQ region
- North America
Markets served
Nature’s Variety business model
Business model- GTM type
- B2C
- Offering type
- Hardware or Manufacturing
- Cost components
- Supply Chain, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Personnel, Technology or R&D
Revenue model
- Pet Food Product Sales: Nature's Variety generates revenue through the sale of premium raw, fresh, frozen, and freeze-dried pet food products for dogs and cats across multiple product formats including meals, kibble, wet food, and toppers.
Pricing tiers
| Model | Billing | Price |
|---|---|---|
| Unit Pricing | Pay-as-you-go | Premium raw pet food products across multiple formats |
Go-to-market motion2 records
Distribution channels3 records
Marketing channels6 records
Nature’s Variety product offering
Product offeringCore offering
Nature's Variety, through its Instinct brand, manufactures and sells premium raw and fresh pet food products for dogs and cats across multiple formats including refrigerated FreshRaw meals, Frozen Raw meals, freeze-dried FreshDried meals, Boosted Kibble with raw bites, RawBoost Mixers, Raw Coated Kibble, toppers, wet food, and traditional kibble. The portfolio is positioned around whole-food ingredients without fillers, enabling pet owners to add raw nutrition to any feeding routine.
Product overview
Instinct Pet Food is a brand under Nature's Variety offering a portfolio of raw and fresh pet food products. The product line ranges from complete fresh meals to add-on/raw-enhanced options: FreshRaw Meals (refrigerated fresh food) and Frozen Raw Meals serve as complete meal solutions, while FreshDried provides shelf-stable freeze-dried alternatives. The portfolio includes Boosted Kibble (kibble with freeze-dried raw bites), RawBoost Mixers (toppers for adding raw to any food), and Raw Coated Kibble as modular ways to incorporate raw nutrition into traditional feeding routines. The products fit every pet, preference, and lifestyle with the positioning that raw doesn't have to be all-or-nothing.
Differentiator
Problem solved
Functional benefit
Products and services
- FreshRaw Meals Fresh, refrigerated raw meals for dogs and cats made with real whole-food ingredients without cheap fillers like white rice or pasta. Designed for pet parents seeking the freshest raw feeding option.
- Frozen Raw Meals Minimally processed, never cooked raw meals frozen for freshness, positioned as the purest form of raw nutrition for dogs and cats.
- FreshDried Shelf-stable raw meals freeze-dried for convenience, positioned as an easy upgrade from kibble for dogs and cats.
- Boosted Kibble Protein-packed kibble combined with freeze-dried raw bites, providing boosted raw nutrition in a traditional kibble format for dogs and cats.
- RawBoost Mixers Topper products (Raw Boost Shakers) designed to add raw nutrition to any food for enhanced protein, taste, and nutrition for dogs and cats.
- Raw Coated Kibble Kibble coated with freeze-dried raw for simple raw nutrition, available for dogs and cats.
- Wet Food Wet/canned pet food options for dogs and cats.
- Kibble Traditional dry kibble options for dogs and cats.
Companies that use Nature’s Variety
Customer profileSegments2 records
Ideal customer profiles2 records
Nature’s Variety technology and API
TechnologyTechnology focussed No
API detail
- Has API
- No
- API docs
- API detail
Core technology
AI maturity
App detail
Feature5 records
Nature’s Variety partnerships and signals
Strategic signalScale indicators4 records
Recent moves6 records
Expansion highlights4 records
Nature’s Variety competitors and assessment
Company assessmentBroad incumbents
- Freshpet: Public refrigerated fresh pet food brand with broad grocery and mass retail distribution. A larger incumbent in the fresh/refrigerated segment where Instinct's FreshRaw Meals compete, with much greater scale and shelf presence.
- Blue Buffalo (General Mills): Mass-market premium pet food brand owned by General Mills with broad retail distribution across dry, wet, and treat categories. Represents a larger, well-funded incumbent competing for premium pet parent wallet share.
- Champion Petfoods (Orijen & ACANA): Premium global pet food manufacturer behind Orijen and ACANA, with strong whole-prey and biologically-appropriate positioning that overlaps with Instinct's premium natural/raw brand narrative.
Direct peers
- Open Farm: Premium pet food brand with a strong sustainability and ingredient-sourcing story across kibble, wet, freeze-dried raw and toppers. Overlaps with Instinct's Boosted Kibble, RawBoost Mixers and FreshDried categories.
- Smallbatch Pets: Boutique raw and freeze-dried pet food maker competing in the same premium raw niche as Instinct, with a similar ingredient-transparency and minimal-processing value proposition.
- Primal Pet Foods: Direct competitor offering frozen raw, freeze-dried raw, and raw toppers for dogs and cats. Competes head-to-head with Instinct's FreshRaw, Frozen Raw, and FreshDried lines across DTC and pet retail.
- Northwest Naturals: Regional-to-national raw and freeze-dried pet food manufacturer offering frozen raw diets, freeze-dried and raw toppers — a direct competitor in the same raw-product formats as Instinct's Frozen Raw and FreshDried lines.
- Stella & Chewy's: Direct competitor in the premium raw and freeze-dried pet food category for dogs and cats, with similar raw-ingredient positioning, frozen and shelf-stable SKUs, and pet specialty retail distribution.
- The Farmer's Dog: DTC-native fresh, human-grade dog food brand with a subscription model. Directly competes with Instinct's FreshRaw DTC offering on convenience, freshness positioning, and direct customer relationships.
- Spot & Tango: DTC fresh pet food subscription competitor offering fresh and 'UnKibble' formats. Competes with Instinct on premium fresh positioning and digital-first customer acquisition.
Market position
Strengths4 records
Weaknesses4 records
Competitive moat3 records
Key risks5 records
Key highlights7 records
Customer concentration
Nature’s Variety social profiles
Digital presenceNature’s Variety financial estimates
Financial estimateRevenue estimate
Valuation estimate
Nature’s Variety leadership team
Management profileNumber of profiles
Profiles2 records
Nature’s Variety funding detail
Funding detailFunding overview
Funding rounds1 record
Investors1 record
Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Nature’s Variety M&A and investment
M&A and investmentM&A
Investments
M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Frequently asked questions about Nature’s Variety
What does Nature’s Variety do?
Nature's Variety, through its Instinct brand, manufactures and sells premium raw and fresh pet food products for dogs and cats across multiple formats including refrigerated FreshRaw meals, Frozen Raw meals, freeze-dried FreshDried meals, Boosted Kibble with raw bites, RawBoost Mixers, Raw Coated Kibble, toppers, wet food, and traditional kibble. The portfolio is positioned around whole-food ingredients without fillers, enabling pet owners to add raw nutrition to any feeding routine.
When was Nature’s Variety founded?
Nature’s Variety was founded in 2005. It employs 501 to 1,000 people.
Where is Nature’s Variety based?
Nature’s Variety is headquartered in Saint Louis, United States, in the North America region.
How does Nature’s Variety make money?
One revenue line is on record: pet Food Product Sales.
Who are Nature’s Variety's main competitors?
Broad incumbents on record are Freshpet, Blue Buffalo (General Mills) and Champion Petfoods (Orijen & ACANA). Direct peers are Open Farm, Smallbatch Pets, Primal Pet Foods, Northwest Naturals, Stella & Chewy's, The Farmer's Dog and Spot & Tango.
Does Nature’s Variety have an API?
No public API is recorded for Nature’s Variety.
What industry is Nature’s Variety in?
Nature’s Variety's product category is Pet Food. Its primary akta.pro industry code is CRADAFAD, Frozen & Raw Pet Food (incl. freeze-dried), with a secondary code of AFADAFAE, Raw & Fresh Pet Food (Refrigerated/Frozen). Its NAICS code is 311111 and its SIC code is 2000.