Akash Bedi of H&H Group Examines the Present & Future of Pet Health

H&H Group is a global health and nutrition company that owns Zesty Paws and Solid Gold. H&H Group entered pet market by acquiring Solid Gold in 2020, and it purchased Zesty Paws the following year.

Akash Bedi is the current Rotating Group CEO and CEO for North America at H&H Group, where he has played a pivotal role in transforming the company’s global growth strategy and expanding its presence in the pet nutrition and care sector. Since joining H&H in 2018, Bedi has led strategy, operations and international expansion initiatives across key global markets. He was instrumental in the creation of the Group’s pet nutrition and care platform through the acquisitions of Solid Gold and Zesty Paws, helping establish a major new growth engine for the business.

Under Bedi’s leadership, Zesty Paws has scaled significantly in the U.S. market, while North America has grown to become H&H Group’s second-largest market globally. Prior to H&H Group, he spent more than a decade at HSBC Global Banking and Markets, advising leading consumer and retail companies across Asia, Europe, and North America. Pet Age recently spoke with Bedi to get his insights on a variety of pet health topics.

What do you consider to be the biggest advancement in oral hygiene since dental bones?

Pet dental care has historically focused on mechanical scraping, even though the real issue is bacterial biofilm. The biggest advancement today is the shift toward biological oral care that targets the biofilm itself and helps rebalance the oral microbiome before plaque and tartar develop.

That shift matters because dental disease is one of the most common health problems in pets. Around 80% of dogs and 70% of cats show signs of dental disease by age three, yet preventative options remain limited. Brushing requires daily consistency most owners cannot maintain, while professional cleanings are expensive, infrequent, and often require anesthesia. Consumers are increasingly looking for easier daily solutions built into existing routines.

At Zesty Paws, we approach oral care as a system rather than a single product. Our Clean Breath Bites focus on biological support with Peppermint Oil for fresh breath, Brown Sea Kelp and Green Tea Extract to disrupt plaque biofilm, and EpiCor Pets for immune support. Our All-in-One Functional Dental Bones complement that with ridged textures for mechanical cleaning plus calcium, Omega-3s, inulin and turmeric for whole-body wellness. Together, they address both the bacterial and physical sides of oral care in formats dogs actually enjoy.

Looking ahead, the category is moving away from synthetic chemical actives and toward biotic-led solutions like probiotics, postbiotics, enzymes and botanicals. Many oral care ingredients were adapted from human products without accounting for the fact that pets ingest everything they chew daily for years. Naturally derived ingredients better support the microbiome and the broader body system, and we expect biotic oral care to become a major area of innovation over the next few years.

How is genetics playing an important role in gut health for pets?

The pet probiotic category is evolving because the industry now recognizes that probiotics are not one-size-fits-all. Many products were originally developed for humans and later adapted for pets under the assumption that “gut is gut.” New microbiome science shows otherwise.

Genetics matters on two levels. First, pets themselves have different microbiomes. Research using 16S rRNA sequencing has shown that breeds vary significantly in microbial diversity and the abundance of beneficial bacteria like Lactobacillus and Enterococcus. A strain that works well in one dog may not colonize effectively in another.

Second, the genetics of the microbes themselves matter. Host-specific strains isolated from dogs or cats adhere to the gut lining and compete against pathogens more effectively than generic human-derived strains. Host specificity is not just marketing; it directly impacts colonization and performance.

This science is reshaping one of the fastest-growing categories in pet supplements. Gut health is now the second-largest need state behind hip and joint because consumers increasingly understand the microbiome’s role in immunity, allergies, digestion, behavior, and healthy aging. Roughly 70% of the immune system lives in the gut, yet many products still rely on human-derived strains with little species-specific validation.

That gap inspired Zesty Paws Native Canine Probiotic. The formula uses canine-origin strains including Enterococcus faecium, Megamonas funiformis, and Pepacetobacter hiranonis, all studied specifically for the canine gut. Because the strains are native to dogs, they colonize efficiently, support stool quality, strengthen the gut lining, and help maintain microbial balance more effectively than generalized probiotics.

We see this as the beginning of a larger platform. The next opportunity is extending host-specific science into feline health and eventually into adjacent categories like immune, skin, and healthy aging support.

What are some recent innovations in the flea & tick sector?

Flea and tick has traditionally been a chemical category because chemicals work effectively against parasites. Most innovation has focused on convenience and duration, moving from monthly applications to longer-lasting oral treatments and injectables.

What the category has not fully addressed is the household impact. Many homes today are multi-pet households with children present. Pets groom each other, share spaces, and interact constantly with family members, which can spread topical residues throughout the home. Consumers are becoming increasingly aware of that exposure.

At the same time, parasite pressure is rising as tick populations expand across North America along with the diseases they carry. That has accelerated demand for alternative approaches, especially plant-based solutions.

Our philosophy at Zesty Paws centers on year-round prevention and layered protection. Our Flea & Tick Bites are daily plant-based chews designed to work systemically, similar to oral pharmaceutical products but built on botanicals rather than synthetic chemistry. The formula features our proprietary RepelGuard blend, including thyme, rosemary, lemon balm, fenugreek, wormwood, lemongrass, aged garlic extract, and allicin.

What differentiates the platform is the clinical support behind it. The Bioticks complex has been evaluated in peer-reviewed, double-blind, placebo-controlled studies showing statistically significant flea reduction in both dogs and cats. Few natural flea and tick solutions have published evidence at that level. Because the protection works internally, there is no topical residue circulating between pets, furniture, or children. We complement the oral product with a Flea & Tick Shampoo and Spray powered by Cedarwood, Rosemary, Eugenol, and Peppermint Oils to create a more complete household-focused regimen.

Looking ahead, feline health is one of the biggest opportunities. Cats metabolize many synthetic flea and tick chemicals more slowly than dogs and are more likely to ingest residues while grooming. That makes plant-based alternatives especially compelling for the category’s future.

References for Q1:

Claim: “Roughly 80% of dogs and 70% of cats show signs of dental disease by age three, and oral bacteria can travel through the bloodstream and stress the heart, kidneys, and liver.”

Link: https://www.avma.org/resources-tools/pet-owners/petcare/pet-dental-care

Claim: “Most pet parents do not brush even weekly.”

Link: https://www.aaha.org/resources/preventive-healthcare-for-pets/

Claim: “An annual professional cleaning can run anywhere from $400 to over $1,000 per visit.”

Link: https://www.petmd.com/dog/care/how-much-does-dog-teeth-cleaning-cost

References for Q2:

Claim: “16S rRNA sequencing has confirmed that breeds carry meaningfully different baseline microbiomes… microbial diversity differs between mixed-breed and purebred dogs.”

Link: https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC11433972/ (Decoding the Gut Microbiome in Companion Animals, MDPI Microorganisms, 2024)

Claim: “Probiotic strains of canine and feline origin adhere to the gut wall and outcompete pathogens more effectively than generic human-derived strains.”

Link: https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC9039956/ (Perspectives and advances in probiotics and the gut microbiome in companion animals, PMC)

Claim: “Gut is now the second largest need state in pet supplements behind hip and joint, and it is the fastest growing, with digestive supplements expanding at roughly 12% CAGR.”

Link: https://www.mordorintelligence.com/industry-reports/pet-dietary-supplements-market

Claim: “47% of dog owners in 2023 to 53% in 2024.”

Link: https://www.americanpetproducts.org/ (APPA, June 2025)

Claim: “Microbiome imbalance has been linked to inflammatory bowel disease, obesity, food allergies, and behavior changes.”

Link: https://www.aaha.org/trends-magazine/publications/improve-pets-microbiome-improve-their-quality-of-life/ (AAHA Trends, December 2025)

References for Q3:

Claim: “The global flea and tick market is roughly $8 billion in 2025 and projected to reach $17 billion by 2033 at nearly 10% CAGR.”

Link: https://www.cognitivemarketresearch.com/flea-tick-products-market-report

Claim: “Tick territory across North America is expanding, with the Asian longhorned tick and the lone star tick spreading into new regions and the diseases they carry, Lyme, anaplasmosis, ehrlichiosis, rising alongside them.”

Link: https://www.cdc.gov/ticks/

Cat study (2023): https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/37259343/ (Banuls D, Brun J, Blua JL, Cadiergues MC. “A Dietary Plant Extract Formulation Helps Reduce Flea Populations in Cats: A Double-Blind Randomized Study.” Pharmaceuticals (Basel). 2023;16(2):195)

Dog study (2020): https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/32114287/ (Moog F, Plichart GV, Blua JL, Cadiergues MC. “Evaluation of a plant-based food supplement to control flea populations in dogs: A prospective double-blind randomized study.” Int J Parasitol Drugs Drug Resist. 2020;12:38-44)