Back in 2016, we set up Edgard & Cooper because we wanted to feed our dogs better food. We thought it was a good idea, but we never imagined we’d be here eight years later, with a team of over 200 people in seven offices, selling millions of packs of naturally nutritious and tasty food every year and having raised more than €2.3million for dog and cat charities around the world.

We’ve grown fast, and that growth has always been on the strong foundations of our company values and in service of our mission: to protect the great outdoors for people, pets and the future of our planet.

Our Zero Pawprint Plan has guided our growth and has helped us stay on track even when the going got tough.

One of our values is Choose Right, Not Easy, and this year, that’s what we’ve called this report. Sometimes doing the right thing means a lot of hard work, but it’s still what we must do, because it’s what we believe in.

There was a lot to be proud of in 2023. We relaunched our dog treats using ingredients with 64% lower carbon emissions than before, and higher animal welfare. We did this by making some bold choices – including reducing the amount of meat in the recipes and removing beef altogether - all without compromising on nutrition or taste. We’ve also been doing a lot of work behind the scenes on our packaging which has laid the foundations for a new packaging strategy that will ensure we make the right choices in a rapidly evolving market.

2023 was another challenging year for businesses with continuing inflation, which meant we made the difficult decision to raise our prices for the second time in two years. It means a lot to us that customers stuck with us despite this and continue to put their trust in us to keep their four-legged friends happy and healthy.

Next year is going to bring a lot of changes, as we will be joining the General Mills family as a fully owned subsidiary. As founders we will continue to lead the business and ensure its ongoing growth and success, along with our incredibly talented and dedicated pack.

We’re excited to grow, so we can have impact at scale. Through the Edgard & Cooper Foundation we’ve already helped to eradicate rabies in Kabul, train vets in Chile and Bolivia, and fund dozens of much-needed neutering programmes around the world, and that’s just the start.

With 1% of sales revenue going to charity, our Foundation will continue to go from strength to strength, helping thousands more dogs and cats around the world to live better lives.

We choose right not easy because all the hard work is worth it. Thank you for being with us on our journey.

Louis, Koen and Jürgen