Wednesday, September 30, 2009

the perfect eco-friendly package

ok, this is definitely post worthy...since the beginning i had this vision of what JOY biscuits packaging would be like and in august it came true! i wanted a container that was craft brown and earth-friendly with a see through lid. the picture was very vivid in my mind, but finding the container was a challenge. finally after crossing paths with a friend of a friend, i discovered a local company that distributes bagasse containers!
bagasse is a sugarcane fiber that is biodegradable and compostable. these containers will break down in 1-3 months in a large scale compost program, and 2-4 months in a home compost bin depending on the temperature. the lids are made out of corn starch and other earth-friendly starches, and are also compostable! we feel these containers depict exactly what JOY biscuits is all about. we are sooo excited to start offering JOY biscuits in this packaging and think that you will like them too!

Sunday, September 20, 2009

JOY biscuits helps fund raise for GSGA!

i have some VERY exciting news! JOY biscuits will be at the annual golden state greyhound adoption (GSGA) picnic in early october. we will be selling our tasty treats to help fund raise for this wonderful organization. if you would like to meet a greyhound and learn more about this amazing breed, go to a meet and greet! meet and greets occur all over the bay area and provide the opportunity to ask questions and meet a greyhound (we went to a few before adopting champ!). visit: http://www.goldengreyhounds.com/events/index.htm for more details.

Saturday, September 19, 2009

the evolution of JOY biscuits recipes

people frequently ask me where i get my recipes from.
the answer is, i create them!

after months of researching recipes online and baking...and making modifications from batch to batch...the outcome of JOY biscuits recipes have been positively met with enthusiasm and happy dogs! when i initially started baking dog biscuits (before the creation of JOY biscuits) i used wheat flour. then after reading about how wheat is ubiquitous in dog food recipes and that many dogs develop allergies to wheat, i discontinued including wheat flour in my recipes. i found that using alternative flours (like brown rice flour, and rye and barley flours) were more easy on the digestive system and just as nutrient-rich, if not more, as wheat. i should also mention that greyhounds who are newly retired from the track have notably sensitive stomachs and i wanted to create a treat that even the "fresh off the track greyhounds" could enjoy without any GI distress.

if your furry friend was part of the JOY biscuits R&D pack in the early stages, you know that the first round of healthy skin and coat biscuits (peanut butter & flax round A, batches 1-3 and round B, batch 1) did not have sunflower seed meal. after stumbling upon some interesting articles and talking with my vet friend, i learned that omega-6 fatty acids, more specifically linoleic acid (LA) is the fatty acid that aids in a healthy skin and coat. LA optimizes water permeability in the skin, thus being a great treatment for dry, dull, and brittle skin and coats. in fact, there are no scientific studies showing that dogs actually transform omega-3s into linoleic acid (like humans do) to benefit from the anti-inflammatory benefits. therefore JOY biscuits added sunflower seed meal to the healthy skin and coat biscuit line.

sunflower seeds are high in omega-6 acids (more so than flax seed), and are an excellent source of fiber, vitamins, and minerals which are cancer-fighting and promote heart health.

i hope this sheds some light on the evolution of JOY biscuits recipes and thanks for reading!