Iams

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Wikipedia

Iams
Product typePet food
Owner
CountryUnited States
Introduced1946; 80 years ago (1946)
MarketsWorldwide
Websiteiams.com

Iams (/ˈaɪəmz/) is an American brand of dog food and cat food manufactured by Spectrum Brands in Europe and Mars, Incorporated worldwide excluding Europe. The food is formulated for the puppy/kitten, adult and mature stages of life. Veterinary formulas for pets with special dietary requirements are also produced.[1]

History

During the 1940s, because pet food was not available in stores, animals were predominantly fed homemade food, usually table scraps.[2] Paul Iams, an animal nutritionist who graduated from the Ohio State University in 1937, founded the Iams Company in 1946 in a small feed mill near Dayton, Ohio.[3] In the 1950s, he developed the world's first animal-based protein dry dog food and called it Iams 999.[1][4]

During the 1973 Arab oil embargo, the cost of meat and bone meal tripled, while sale prices in the U.S. were frozen under Phase I of President Richard Nixon's Economic Stabilization Program.[5] Iams did not change its product formula during this period, and the company nearly went bankrupt as a result.[2] Clay Mathile, who had joined Iams in 1970, purchased half of the company in 1975.[6] In 1982, he became its sole owner and president.[7] Having increased company revenue from $100,000 in 1970 to $900 million in 1999, Mathile sold Iams to Procter & Gamble in September 1999.[3][8]

In its largest divestiture in five years, Procter & Gamble announced in April 2014 that it would sell the Iams, Eukanuba, and Natura pet-food brands in all markets except Europe to Mars, Inc. for $2.9 billion in cash.[9] Mars said that the deal would allow it to gain a new business and generate cash to grow core businesses.[10] The deal for P&G Pet Care's operations in North America and Latin America was completed in August 2014.[11] P&G also exercised options to acquire Mars's pet-food business in some parts of Asia Pacific, Middle East and Africa, including Australia, Japan and Singapore.[12][13] Procter & Gamble sold its European pet-care business to Spectrum Brands in December 2014.[14]

In 2025, the company launched an awareness campaign addressing feline obesity, featuring the fictional character Garfield.[15][16]

References

  1. 1 2 "History". Juggle". Archived from the original on 2011-01-11. Retrieved 2011-05-06.
  2. 1 2 "Iams History". Coupon for Dog[permanent dead link]
  3. 1 2 Bayot, Jennifer (2004-11-03). "Paul F. Iams, 89, Developer of a Line of Premium Pet Foods, Dies". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 2020-06-10.
  4. ↑ "Iams Cat Food Coupons Jun 2020". Pet Food Talk. Retrieved 2020-06-10.
  5. ↑ "The History of Iams". Retrieved 2020-06-10.
  6. ↑ "History of Iams Company – FundingUniverse". Funding Universe. Retrieved 2020-06-10.
  7. ↑ Dirr, Jacob (2 June 2008). "Former Iams owner Clay Mathile says loyalty can be nemesis". Cincinnati Business Courier. Retrieved 2020-06-10.
  8. ↑ "sold to P&G ". All Voices". Archived from the original on 2012-10-04. Retrieved 2011-05-06.
  9. ↑ "Mars to buy most of P&G's pet food business for $2.9 billion". CNBC. 9 April 2014. Retrieved 24 December 2025.
  10. ↑ Wahba, Phil (April 9, 2014). "P&G selling pet food brands to Mars for $2.9 billion". Reuters. Retrieved March 5, 2016.
  11. ↑ "Mars, Incorporated Completes Acquisition of Procter & Gamble's Pet Food Business in Major Markets". PR Newswire. 1 August 2014.
  12. ↑ "Mars buys Iams, others for $2.9B". The Enquirer. Retrieved 2020-06-10.
  13. ↑ "Mars Closes Acquisition Of P&G's Pet Food Business In Major Markets". RTTNews. Retrieved 2020-06-10.
  14. ↑ "Spectrum Brands Completes Acquisition of the European IAMS and Eukanuba Pet Food Business". Business Wire. December 31, 2014. Retrieved March 4, 2016.
  15. ↑ "IAMS partners with Garfield on overweight cat awareness campaign". Pet Food Industry. November 19, 2025. Retrieved December 9, 2025.
  16. ↑ "IAMS partners with Garfield to tackle cat obesity crisis". Pet Food processing. November 19, 2025. Retrieved December 9, 2025.