Petaluma is a sustainable dog nutrition brand and B Corporation with an ambitious goal to challenge the pet food industry’s reliance on animal agriculture. Petaluma is driving forward the nutritional science and ingredient innovation to replace factory-farmed animal protein with nutritionally complete plant-based dog nutrition that requires far less land, water, and greenhouse gas emissions.
Backed by science and formulated by veterinarians, Petaluma provides all the nutrients dogs need for a healthy and balanced diet. Petaluma is a Certified B Corporation and member of 1% for the Planet and Climate Neutral.
Founder Story Petaluma was started in 2019 by husband and wife duo Caroline Buck and Garrett Wymore in Oakland, CA. They were inspired to launch the company after a trip to a hobby farm in Petaluma, CA with their dog Leo. Leo quickly blended in with the other farm animals, blurring the line permanently for the couple between animals cared for as pets and those raised as food. The experience capped years of discomfort and doubts about eating animals and began a path to a plant-based diet. It also pushed the couple to become more informed about nutrition and challenge the misconception that plants cannot provide enough protein or nutrients.
At the time, Garrett was leading one of the world’s largest dog health studies at a major pet care company, where he worked with experts in animal health and pet food manufacturing and gained insight into the massive role that pet food plays in our broken agricultural system. It was clear that plant-based ingredients could nourish dogs with a radically smaller footprint. Caroline's experience in marketing and brand development helped her take fresh eyes to the dog food industry and challenge the tired narrative that we should feed dogs as if they were carnivorous wolves. She felt there was space and urgency for a brand to tackle the very real environmental burden of feeding pets, as well as a business opportunity to offer high-quality products that don't compromise on ethical sourcing, nutritional quality, or dedication to sustainable practices.
Caroline and Garrett teamed up with veterinary nutrition experts and spent years refining and testing their first formula, a baked food for adult dogs, before launching as a direct-to-consumer business in 2021. They have since won over thousands of customers, launched a single-ingredient organic treat, and earlier this year launched a baked diet tailored to senior dogs.
