Perfect piglet feed
Sometime ago, I was asked to make ‘the perfect’ piglet feed without regards to cost. Rightly so, a couple weeks later, the feed was ready and from the first field trials it was obvious pigs loved it. But the pig owners had other ideas.
The pig owners did not really appreciate the price tag that came along that feed. So, I was asked by the feed manufacturer to make the same feed but ‘cheaper’. OK, not the same, but about the same.
Now, the buyers really liked the feed or rather its lower price, but lamentably pigs did not share their enthusiasm; although they were sport enough to continue eating it. Expecting a marketing bonanza, I was asked next to make again ‘the same’ feed as cheap as possible, ignoring feed intake. At this point, the pigs really hated the feed and the producers were quite upset. At the end, the manufacturer was completely confused.
This is my favorite story. For me, it proves two points. First, you cannot have a good piglet feed at a low price. Good quality ingredients are not cheap. Fish meal is 1.4 euros per kg, premium grade whey is 0.90 euros per kg, plasma is 4.0 euros per kg. Do I need to go on?
Second, this is a good example of lack of proper marketing strategy prior to launching a new piglet feed. Obviously, there is a market for quality feed and there is a market for low cost feed. In my experience, those who try to play in both markets, lose patently!
Any such stories to share?
