Purina Q&A: Restoring Ocean Health Through Sustainability

Purina Europe is continuing to advance its sustainability agenda while championing better lives for pets and the people who love them.

Drawing on decades of expertise in pet care and a strong European presence, the business is transforming ambitious sustainability goals into concrete programmes with dedicated budgets across climate action, responsible sourcing, packaging, circularity and stakeholder engagement.

As Head of Corporate Communications and Sustainability, Kerstin Schmeiduch leads the integration of sustainability into Purina Europe’s strategy, operations and culture.

By engaging external partners, employees and pet parents, she is steering the company’s sustainability transformation.

Kerstin shares her insights with Sustainability Magazine.

What is Purina’s Ocean Restoration Programme?

The Ocean Restoration Programme (ORP) grew from a strategic reassessment of our environmental impact.

As part of reviewing Purina Europe’s sustainability strategy, we analysed how our operations intersect with the nine planetary boundaries.

We asked ourselves how our business influences climate change, ocean acidification, land use and fertiliser use and what risks declining ocean biodiversity could pose to our supply chain. 

Fish by-products are an important ingredient for us.

While prime cuts go to humans, the nutritious parts that people do not wish to consume are transformed into high-quality pet food.

Protecting these resources requires safeguarding the marine ecosystems on which they depend.

We recognised that restoring nursery grounds and habitats for fish can contribute in building supply resilience.

Across Europe and globally, critical marine environments such as oyster mother reefs, seagrass beds and seaweed forests have declined, while predator imbalances, including overpopulation of sea urchins in Norway, have created areas devoid of marine life.

The ORP looks to address some of these challenges by helping to restore marine habitats that form the foundation of healthy fish populations.

In doing so, it combines ecological restoration with investment in ocean ecosystems.

How does the ORP benefit Purina?

The ORP strengthens Purina’s supply chain resilience.

At the same time, the programme responds to declining ocean health caused by biodiversity loss and overfishing.

By restoring marine habitats, Purina invests in the long-term sustainability of its ingredients while contributing to broader ecosystem recovery for fish, people and the planet.

What partners are you working with for the ORP and when doing so, how do you source your products sustainably?

We select partners with proven restoration expertise, strong academic foundations and robust community engagement.

Oyster Heaven works to increase oyster abundance by using natural, biodegradable bricks.

Larvae settle on the bricks for several months before being placed in coastal areas where oyster populations have disappeared and, as the oysters grow, they form natural reefs.

Sea Forester focuses on large-scale seaweed restoration using a reforestation approach that strengthens coastal biodiversity.

The Sea Ranger Service trains young people as marine conservationists who restore seagrass beds, combining environmental and social benefits. 

Urchinomics addresses sea urchin overgrazing in Norway, helping to revive seaweed forests that have been severely depleted.  

These partners collaborate to share expertise, key performance indicators and best practices, ensure measurable and lasting results.

Purina upholds strict sustainable sourcing standards.

All seafood ingredients follow responsible sourcing guidelines and Purina strives to ensure that no ingredients originate from marine protected areas.

The company is a founding member of the Bycatch Solutions Hub, which helps protect hundreds of thousands of sharks, turtles, marine mammals and seabirds from harm in commercial fisheries.

How does the ORP fit into Purina’s wider sustainability goals and initiatives?

The ORP is a central pillar of Purina’s broader sustainability agenda, which spans three core areas: planet, pets and people.

In terms of the planet, Purina is encouraging circularity through recycled packaging and investing in regenerative agriculture.

For pets, we champion responsible pet ownership and aim to reach more than three million people by 2030 so they understand pet care, nutrition and welfare. 

In relation to people, our BetterwithPets Prize initiative aims to help 1,000,000 people in vulnerable situations improve their health and wellbeing through the power of the pet human bond by 2030.

The Prize supports social entrepreneurs and charities that improve human wellbeing through the pet-human bond.

This includes organisations such as StreetVet in the United Kingdom, which provides free, accessible veterinary care to the pets of people experiencing homelessness, helping to preserve the vital bond between them.

Purina’s ORPme is more than an environmental initiative, it’s a commitment to shaping a future where thriving ecosystems, resilient supply chains and responsible pet care go hand in hand.

By investing in ocean health alongside regenerative agriculture and our social impact projects, we are demonstrating that sustainability is not a standalone goal but a shared responsibility.

Together with partners and communities, we aim to create lasting change for pets, people and the planet.