Guardian Pet Food Driven by Transparency, Sustainability

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In December 2021, Guardian Pet Food received a patent for its NOBL Canine Food Bar, which is described as a “compact nutrient dense freeze-dried food product.” Pet Age recently spoke with Jim Galovski, founder, president and CEO of Massachusetts-based Guardian Pet Food to learn how the brand’s innovations are transforming the pet food and supplement sectors. 

Why do transparency and sustainability matter to Guardian Pet Food Company? 

Since our founding, Guardian has been about making pet nutrition more transparent. We have chosen to provide facts and data in a straightforward, easy-to-understand manner. While many companies oversimplify things and talk about ingredients, we speak about essential amino acids and digestibility results. We are committed to sharing our metabolized energy and kcal distribution by macronutrient. This level of transparency and education is critical for pet parents to better understand nutrition to then make informed decisions. Consumers entrust us with the health and well-being of a family member, and we take that very seriously.  

Regarding sustainability, we want to steer the conversation towards “cradle-to-grave” solutions. The definition of sustainability is “avoiding depletion of resources in order to maintain an ecological balance.” Industry efforts towards sustainability need to be applied against the raw materials used, the production process, shipping/freight distances, packaging, and even pet waste. For example, if you make your packaging slightly more recyclable but it is imported from overseas and needs to be sorted and sent to a special facility to be recycled, is that really sustainable? At Guardian, we currently use Recycle Two packaging that is made within two hours of our production facilities. Our products use less packaging materials, weigh 70 percent less than equivalent feeding of kibble and are more digestible, resulting in less waste.  

What makes your NOBL Canine Food Bars so unique in the pet food sector? 

Our NOBL Canine Food Bars are so unique and innovative that they’re patented (USPTO 11,206,852). They are shelf stable, freeze-dried, calorically dense, contain no artificial ingredients and supply vitamins and minerals through fruits and vegetables. The Bars are lightweight, easily fed and perfect for daily in-home feeding or for on-the-go meals. They are scored and break into five pieces, each piece feeding five pounds of dog weight for the entire day. This makes for easier portion control, which is a critical component to fighting obesity. All this information is easily accessible on our website. There you’ll find digestibility results, urinary pH, essential amino acid profiles, sourcing information and real head-to-head comparisons, not just green checkmarks. 

What do you look for in a retail or distribution partner? 

When it comes to partners, we look for retailers and distributors that share our philosophy on pet nutrition. We’re looking to build integrated relationships, not just transactional. Our product is different from traditional pet food in important ways, and it requires a deeper understanding of pet nutrition and health. Our transparency is there to help retailers and distributors increase their knowledge, which, we hope, will be shared with consumers. In addition to the website, we offer in-person and on-line training on our NOBL and Dog Almighty products. We offer a 100 percent guarantee at the consumer, retailer and distributor levels. If you want to sell or represent a brand that does things differently, is innovative, transparent and driven by pet health first and foremost, we want to partner with you. 

Why was it important that Dog Almighty Elixirs be certified by the National Animal Supplement Council (NASC)? 

Much like our NOBL Bars, people see the Dog Almighty Elixirs packaging and think it is something else. With Dog Almighty, people’s first thought is that it is a topper or a gravy, however these are daily supplements for calm and mobility. The NASC Quality Seal is important because it clearly distinguishes Dog Almighty as a supplement and lets the consumer know that the product has gone through a rigorous verification and testing process. Transparency and recognized science are two fundamental tenets at Guardian, and we’re excited to work with NASC and other credible third-party organizations to provide both.