Even though we often pay close attention to our own diets when it comes to eating healthy, what about our pets? 

Wild Earth is a plant-based pet food company promoting clean and high-quality dog food, and has a co-located headquarters in Durham, North Carolina and Berkley, California. 

“We started Wild Earth back in 2018 with a mission to make high-quality, cruelty-free pet food,” said Ryan Bethencourt, the CEO of Wild Earth. “We worked with a lot of veterinarians and scientists and product development people. We launched in 2019, actually, on Shark Tank, which was fun. I closed Mark Cuban, and he has been an investor in Wild Earth since then.” 

Bethencourt, who eats on a plant-based diet, wanted to create a pet food that has the same high-quality, high-protein nutrition that we would expect for ourselves. 

“I have a 12-, nearly 13-year-old German Shepherd — her name is Lady,” Bethencourt said. “I really wanted to develop products for her and for other dogs that were just cleaner, that I felt good about feeding them.”

Wild Earth will be one of only a few pet food companies in the Triangle that promote sustainable food. 

“One of the things that, from a broader perspective with Wild Earth, we are trying to do is we really want the Triangle to become a future of food hub,” Benthencourt said. “We are really excited about that.” 

Mike May, the territory manager at Wild Earth and an NC State alumnus from the Poole College of Management, focuses on organizing events in the Triangle area.

“We did about 98 events last year, just from July to December,” May said. “We are heavily focused on RDU, so that’s where our … Durham focus really falls into play.” 

May said his favorite part of working with Wild Earth is helping out the animals.

“It is so cool to work with a company that aligns with my mission, my own personal mission and values, and everyone on the team seems to share that,” May said. “That’s probably the coolest thing, to be honest. You can’t put a price on that.”

Wild Earth’s events include pop-up markets, farmers markets and festivals. The company has made an appearance at Shop Local Raleigh, Durham Central Park and Durham Bulls Bark in the Park.

“We wanted to make something that was clean, complete, plant-based,” May said. “We feel good about giving it to our fur babies. And there’s just a lot that goes into it: sweet potatoes, chickpeas, oats, spinach, blueberries, real food.” 

Bethencourt said he and May believe in Wild Earth so much that they have eaten many of the products themselves. According to May, the company’s most popular commercial is a clip of  Bethencourt eating Wild Earth’s dog food himself. 

“Why would we feed something to our pets that we wouldn’t eat ourselves?” Bethencourt said. “That’s a really strong principle for us.” 

Wild Earth is currently looking to partner with NC State students or anyone who’s interested in the mission and values of the company.

“We are always looking out for people to be a part of events, to be a part of the mission, speakers, ambassadors,” Bethencourt said. “We think that plant-based is a movement, for the environment, for the animals, for the people, for the planet.”

Wild Earth products are available on its website, Amazon or Chewy, delivered straight to the consumer. If you are interested in learning more about getting involved with Wild Earth, visit its website or apply as a field brand ambassador.