Barf feeding: more than just a fad?

This diet is oriented to the feeding habits of wild dogs, primarily wolves, and goes by the name of barf feeding. The acronym barf originated in America and most experts believe it to stand for "biologically appropriate raw food". Barf food consists mainly of fresh or raw meat, offal, bones and fish, supplemented by fruit, vegetables and herbs. Oils, nuts and green-lipped mussel powder can also be included in a barf meal, but adherents of barf feeding do not all subscribe to the same views regarding the various feeding methods; this is evident from the way in which dog owners describe themselves as full barfers, true barfers or partial barfers. 
Frozen food for pets has been around for a long time. Around 20 years ago, raw food was something of a trend in the pet sector, but the raw food revolution a few years ago triggered a big increase in demand. Initially this demand was met by small, specialist businesses supplying their regular customers with raw food products. Then pet product retailers latched onto this new trend, although a small range of frozen products already featured in the assortment offered by many of these. As raw feeding grew in popularity and attracted more advocates, however, the range was expanded continuously. 

In Germany, Austria and Switzerland, pet store chains such as Kölle Zoo, Megazoo and Qualipet have even begun to integrate barf shops into their stores. "In the barfing segment we are experiencing double-digit growth for the second year in a row," said Ramin Danaei, head of marketing at Kölle Zoo, a company in the Fressnapf Group. Barfing already accounts for 25 per cent of dog food sales and is still on the rise.
Barf feeding has also developed into a key category in the canine department for the Megazoo management in Dortmund. The company, which likewise belongs to the Fressnapf Group, has developed its own shop-in-shop concept called "Dogs Kitchen". Currently still in the pilot phase, the shop stocks over 100 different products, although around 40 of these are responsible for 80 per cent of sales. Due to this, Megazoo may consider streamlining the range further.

Other pet store chains are working on their own shop-in-shop systems for the popular barfing segment. In Switzerland, Qualipet has introduced its…