Brand v. Generic (this time for pets!)

The New York Times has published an article that neatly dovetails with my previous blog entry, the one concerning brand v. generic. It appears that two renowned scientists, a Marion Nestle, the Paulette Goddard professor of nutrition, food studies and public health at New York University, and Malden C. Nesheim, emeritus professor of nutrition at Cornell University, have taken the lion's share of pet food and sifted the remains in order to find out what precisely is in there, and more to the point, what is really the difference between the high end vittles and the low end (published as “Feed Your Pet Right: The Authoritative Guide to Feeding Your Dog and Cat,” published in May by Free Press). You've probably guessed by now about the conclusions. Right. Not much difference. Maybe a prettier package, but all these pet foods come from the same source: human scraps.

So you can spend a lot on your pet and feel all fuzzy good that you are doing your best for good old Max but who--or what? but then again, corporations are people now aren't they?-- you are really doing your part for the bottom line of some rather large food conglomerates. So give yourself a big pat on the back. Bravo! Now hurry up, as fido wants his filet mignon biscuit and I want my stock dividend!