Product : Soy Pet Food/ Soy Feeds

There have been several researchers conducted by a few students of Camarines Sur State Agricultural College proving the effectiveness of soy products as healthy to domestic animals such as cats and dogs. Mr. Marianito Tesorero was able to acquire some findings saying that the product is indeed able to these animals healthy. Backed by this research, I would like to pursue selling Soy Feeds not in the conventional way but Online. I would like to make it available in the international market by establishing a website and perhaps to link it to some websites selling variety of feeds from variety of suppliers. It may be hard to start business in such field because it requires knowledge with solidifying soy and mixing some chemicals that would highly benefit the domestic animals.
The main reason why I would like to venture into such undertaking is because I see that some by-product of the Soy Custard process (taho) are just thrown away and basically just being fed to some farm animals such as pigs by some neighbors. I would like to make the product a product out of this and basically knowing that it indeed has positive effects, I would like it to be globally known and accepted.

The market

My target market is the pet-lovers who would want their pets to stay fit and healthy. I would like to cover up the large demand for such product in the global market.
In 2002, the global market for pet food and pet care products was valued at $46 billion, up 2.6 percent from the previous year. This translates into nearly 17 million tons of food produced annually (Crossley, 2003). Sales in North America were responsible for 41 percent of the global market value (39 percentage units of that from the United States). Western Europe accounted for a further 30.5 percent of the global market, and Japan another 13 percent (Crossley, 2003). As regards animal numbers, 2001 estimates indicate that 67 million dogs and 65 million cats were owned by Americans (Anonymous, 2002). The continued expansion of the industry is driven by increased pet populations, increased spending per pet and an increased use of prepared pet foods and treats in both developed and emerging nations.
Premium dog and cat food sales have experienced dynamic growth in the three regions of the world, but economy and mid-priced foods continue to have a large customer base. Consumers who are cost-conscious regard these foods as being of sufficiently high quality to ensure adequate nutrition. In addition, many of these foods are formulated based on life stage/lifestyle concepts previously available only within the premium food sector. In terms of volume, sales of these foods are higher than those of premium foods (Crossley, 2003).


Benefits of Soy Feeds
Soy protein is generally regarded as the storage protein held in discrete particles called protein bodies which are estimated to contain at least 60-70% of the total soybean protein. Upon germination of the soybean, the protein will be digested and the released amino acids will be transported to locations of seedling growth. Legume proteins, such as soy, and pulses belong to the globulin family of seed storage proteins called leguminins (11S) and vicilins (7S), or glycinin and beta-conglycinin in soybeans. Grains contain a third type of storage protein called gluten or "prolamines". Soybeans also contain biologically active or metabolic proteins such as enzymes, trypsin inhibitors, hemagglutinins, and cysteine proteases. The soy cotyledon storage proteins, important for human nutrition, can be extracted most efficiently by water, water plus dilute alkali (pH 7-9), or aqueous solutions of sodium chloride (0.5-2 M) from dehulled and defatted soybeans that have undergone only a minimal heat treatment so that the protein is close to being native or undenatured. Soybeans are processed into three kinds of protein-rich products; soy flour, soy concentrate, and soy isolate.
Soy products are commonly included in companion animal diets as a source of
Crude protein and (or) amino acids.
Their benefits include:
(1) They are an economical source of protein;
(2) They are readily available and of consistent quality;
(3) They are palatable to the animal as demonstrated using standard palatability tests;
(4) They have a balanced amino acid profile that complements the amino acid pattern of cereals like corn;
(5) They improve diet texture;
(6) In vegetarian diets, they can serve as the major protein source;
(7) They serve as a source of dietary fiber; and
(8) One in particular (textured soy protein) retains its appearance (i.e., looks like meat) after canning.

The benefits of the purchasing the product are as follows:
Faster way of making transactions
Assurance that the product will be delivered on-time
Since it is online, payment is made in various forms
Convenience in the part of the consumers (pet lovers)

Differentiating attribute

The fact that the product is made out of natural soy is already a differentiating attribute. Soybean protein has been shown to be of high quality when evaluated in complete and balanced diets fed to dogs and cats. It is inadequate in sulfur-containing amino acids, so other protein sources or supplemental amino acids must be added to pet foods containing soybean products to achieve proper amino acid balance. Soybeans contain many antinutritional factors but, fortunately, extrusion and canning conditions inactivate most of them. However, the oligosaccharides - stachyose, raffinose, and verbascose remain in soybean products like soybean meal. In addition, the fiber fraction of the plant travels with these products as well. It is not well established exactly how much flatulence results from the presence of the soy oligosaccharides in pet diets, but there is no question that the feces from animals fed soy products contain greater moisture concentrations and is more voluminous. This may be the greatest obstacle in promoting the benefits of soy product inclusion to pet owners. Many health benefits have been attributed to soy consumption by humans, but these have not yet been studied using the companion animal.