SUPERVALU® Launches WholeCare Pet™ Brand of National-Brand-Equivalent Pet Foods, Supplies

Americans love their pets — so much so that more than 90 percent of "pet parents” today view their pets as members of their family.¹ Now, there’s a new way to nurture these furry, four-legged family members with the launch of the SUPERVALU^® (NYSE: SVU) WholeCare Pet™ brand, a complete new line of food products for dogs and cats, along with a variety of treats and supplies to keep them happy and healthy. The WholeCare Pet line, which will replace SUPERVALU’s two former private-label pet product brands, Happy Tails and NutriPlan, will be available nationwide at the company’s family of grocery stores, including Acme^®, Albertsons^®, bigg’s^®, Cub Foods^®, Farm Fresh^®, Hornbacher’s^®, Jewel-Osco^®, Shaw’s/Star Market™, Shop ‘n Save^® and Shoppers Food & Pharmacy^®, as well as at select independent grocery retailers served by SUPERVALU’s supply chain operation.

"Pets will love our new WholeCare Pet line, which offers high-quality, nutritional products in a variety of fun new flavors — all at better prices than the national brands,” said Stacy Bergmann, brand manager, SUPERVALU. "In addition to the value, we believe that pet parents will appreciate the convenience of shopping for their entire family’s nutritional needs at their neighborhood grocery store.”

WholeCare Pet products are formulated to match or exceed the quality of leading national brands, such as Purina Beneful^®, Pedigree^®, Friskies^® cat food, Milk-Bone^® dog biscuits, Pup-Peroni^® and TIDY CATS^® — at everyday savings of at least 15 percent to 30 percent.

The destination for pet food and supplies

The new WholeCare Pet line features nearly 100 dog and cat products, including:

• Nineteen varieties of wet dog and puppy food ranging from Rotisserie Chicken, Beef Filets Porterhouse Steak and Puppy Chicken & Beef to nutrition-minded offerings like Healthy Immunity, Healthy Joint and Healthy Weight.
• Eleven types and sizes of dry dog and puppy food, including Complete Nutrition, High Performance and Weight Management.
• Thirteen varieties of dog biscuits and treats, including Bacon Strips, Mini Hot Dogs and T-bone Steak treats, and 12 rawhide offerings.
• Twenty varieties of wet cat food in feline-friendly flavors such as Chicken and Cheese Soufflé, Grilled Tuna, Salmon and Turkey Florentine.
• Nine types and sizes of dry cat and kitten food, and 10 cat litter offerings.

Bark or meow for food: pet trends

SUPERVALU launches the WholeCare Pet brand as consumers seek to show their love for their pets by providing them with quality, nutritious foods, even as they cope with today’s economic realities. Research shows that:

• 62 percent of consumers believe that their pet deserves to have food that is "as varied as the food I eat.” ¹
• The pet food category is fairly resilient to economic downturns as consumers tend to view pet food purchases in a similar way to the purchase of food for family members. Consumers, however, do become more price sensitive and change where they shop for pet food in order to get the best bargain.²
• Private-label brands, which account for about 13 percent of pet care sales, are of growing importance in the category, in line with broader trends in private-label development.³
• 62 percent of U.S. households, which equates to approximately 71.4 million homes, own a pet, up from 56 percent in 1988. There are an estimated 77.5 million dogs and 93.6 million cats in households across the United States.⁴
• In 2009, it’s estimated that Americans spent approximately $45.5 billion on their pets. Pet food accounted for nearly 39 percent of those sales, or $17.56 billion.

SUPERVALU is supporting the launch of the WholeCare Pet brand with an integrated marketing communications campaign that features banner and circular ads, direct mail, in-store displays and promotions.

"With the WholeCare Pet brand, we’re making it easier and more cost-effective for customers to shower their pets with love and provide them with the high-quality products they deserve,” Bergmann added.

About WholeCare Pet

WholeCare Pet is one of SUPERVALU’s private-label brands, which include Baby Basics^®, Wild Harvest^®, Culinary Circle^®, Stockman & Dakota^®, Stone Ridge Creamery^®, Java Delight^®, Homelife^®, Equaline^® and Shoppers Value^®.

About SUPERVALU INC.

SUPERVALU INC. is one of the largest companies in the U.S. grocery channel with estimated annual sales of $41 billion. SUPERVALU serves customers across the United States through a network of approximately 4,290 stores composed of approximately 1,200 traditional and premium stores, including 850 in-store pharmacies; 1,180 hard discount Save-A-Lot stores, of which 860 are operated by licensee owners; and 1,910 independent stores serviced primarily by the company's traditional food distribution business. SUPERVALU has approximately 170,000 employees. For more information about SUPERVALU, visit www.supervalu.com.

Sources:

¹ Yankelovich MONITOR, 2009
² Euromonitor International, Global Pet Food and Pet Care Products: Historical Lessons From Past Economic Downturns, June 2009
³ Planet Retail, Pet Care Retailing, Creature Comforts Despite Crunch, 2009, www.planetretail.net
⁴ American Pet Products Association (APPA), Industry Statistics and Trends, www.americanpetproducts.org