Ordering food directly from the producer?

Hey,

I've heard some of you mention that you order food directly from the producer/parent company.

For those of you that do, what companies do you order from? Do you have to buy in bulk (if so how much in lbs/cases)? And what does the cost come down to (including shipping)?

I'm just curious as to whether or not this would be a viable option for me...My area has very few stores that carry "premium" cat food and those are large chain stores that only carry the usual ones (nutro, royal canin, blue buffalo, natural balance, and castor and pollux).

I'd really like to try some of the foods that I think would be better for my cats (i.e. wellness, evo, etc.) but these just aren't available in my area and buying per bag online (i.e. petfooddirect) would make them exhorbatantly expensive (of course, I think that paying $18 for a 8lb bag of nutro is a lot).

I'd appreciate any info or experience you have!
Thanks,
Art

Originally Posted by artgecko

I'd really like to try some of the foods that I think would be better for my cats (i.e. wellness, evo, etc.) but these just aren't available in my area and buying per bag online (i.e. petfooddirect) would make them exhorbatantly expensive

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FWIW, you can probably order from online retailers at prices that are similar to what I would pay locally. For example, this is a current comparison for a 6.6 lb bag of EVO dry:

My local store:
$17.99 + sales tax = $19.18

petfooddirect.com
$16.49 - $2.97 discount (PET3463) + $7.99 shipping to MO = $21.51

The PFD order would include a free 5.5 oz can of EVO wet, and you could possibly get a 5% rebate by using FatWallet. Obviously, it would be a better deal if you were ordering more food, but the price isn't outrageous for only one bag.