If you’ve had a WHISKAS-loving moggie with you for some time, you may know that the past few years have presented some curved balls in the way of supply as a result of COVID-19. As New Zealand’s #1 cat food brand*, we take our role feeding Kiwi cats very seriously and are committed to ensuring they are always able to be kept fed and healthy. Our new range brings our sourcing closer to home, which allows us more certainty to react faster to unprecedented events and ensure we will always have stock on shelves for our beloved furry friends.

Thankfully, the new range still includes products suited for cats of all ages and furball needs in exciting new flavours. These have been named to help our consumers easily navigate and identify the best product for their cat, highlighting the meat and fish inclusions. We have also shifted to a new recloseable bag for sealed in freshness.

*Nielsen Total Supermarket Total WHISKAS® Value Sales 10/06/2024

The old range is being replaced with our new flavour range. Our new recipes are easier to find on shelf, with new names to highlight the delicious meat and fish content that your cat loves. These new recipes have similar base flavours that your cat is used to - for example, if you usually feed Seafood Flavour Selections, we recommend transitioning your cat to our new Seafood flavour alternative, Sardine & Prawn Flavours. If you usually feed Hairball Control, we recommended trying the new Furball Control product. You can find our recommended substitutes by scrolling up on this page.

Yes, our recipes are different to our old flavours. We know that some cats can be sensitive to changes to their food, and it may take them a number of days to adjust to the new diet. Mixing your existing pet food with the new food for about 5 days is the ideal approach to transitioning your pet's food, and we have included a transition guide on pack. This enables your pet's digestive system to adjust without experiencing gastrointestinal problems. Unfortunately the old flavours are no longer available for sale.

We are committed to continually improving our products to respond to consumer feedback in an effort to ensure we provide the best products for their cats, every single time. Our new kibble packaging will make it easier for you to find your cat’s favourite flavour on shelf, and the zip closure gives you the ultimate product freshness and helps cut down on food waste. Additionally, they are eligible for soft plastic recycling by returning them to supermarkets and other stores via the Soft Plastics Recycling bins. For more information, head to www.recycling.kiwi.nz

Every country has different recycling infrastructure strengths and weaknesses. Paper-based bags are lined with a thin layer of plastic to protect its content, which unfortunately made it non-recyclable in New Zealand. Here in New Zealand the recycling of paper and paper-based products is a big challenge because any form of contamination of the paper or cardboard (e.g. ink, glue, plastic or food) complicates the recycling process and reduces recycling efficiency. On the other hand, our Soft Plastics Recycling Scheme is very efficient at recycling soft plastics. The recycling happens in-country and the end products can be recreated in to fence posts and other materials, which provides certainty that the packaging will be recycled if it is disposed of correctly.

We have a range of new pack weight ranges: 0.8kg, 1.8kg, 3kg and 6.5kg.

Our new pack weights aims to enhance product freshness and simplify feeding time, storage and access to the product. The new bags are made of a vacuum-packed sturdy plastic, sometimes giving it the appearance of being smaller, and is designed to further retain freshness both before and after your cat is able to their mittens on the kibble.

We have moved our Kitten, Senior and Furball flavours to a smaller bag as we know kittens and senior cats typically eat smaller quantities and furballs are often a temporary challenge. On top of enabling optimal product freshness, this reduces overcommitment for a functional need.

We’ve simplified the weight categories on pack to make it easier for you to read. We know that many New Zealand cat owners like to mix feed with both wet and dry food, so we’ve provided a mixed feeding guide on pack to help your cat receive the right amount of calories for their lifestyle. As with all feeding guides, please adapt the amount of food you feed based on the activity level and specific requirements of your cat.

We are committed to continually improving our products to respond to market trends and consumer feedback, to ensure we provide the best quality cat food products.

We have invested in several avenues to call the change out and communicate the WHISKAS® kibble packaging change to consumers including:

• Digital media via our website and Facebook page;

• Print media including catalogue advertising, out of home billboards;

• Television and online video channels including YouTube and Video on Demand services; and

• Point of sale material at the shelf.

Similarly, we are working with our trade partners to update the WHISKAS® kibble range across supermarket shelves. 

The recommended retail price for the WHISKAS® Dry range varies according to the pack size, with greater value on some of the larger pack sizes.