MINNEAPOLIS — TEEF! by Primal Health, a line of dental hygiene products for pets, was the grand-prize winner of the Texas A&M University College of Veterinary Medicine & Biomedical Sciences’ 2020 Veterinary Innovation Summit Pitch Competition.

This year’s event took place online due to COVID-19 and was sponsored by Nationwide Pet Insurance, Purina ProPlan Veterinary Diets and Purina’s Pet Care Innovation Prize program.

Virtual pitches for the competition were due July 7, and prizes were awarded July 21. Primal Health announced the award on Aug. 10.

According to Primal Health, more than 35 companies submitted pitch videos to be considered for the competition. The top 10 companies chosen were Bubby Dog Academy, Dinbeat, Dogdrop, Kubanda, KwikVet, Mella, Mew and Me, Roo, TEEF! and VetGuardian.

TEEF! by Primal Health was awarded first place and a monetary award of $5,000. Second place went to Roo for a prize of $3,000, and KwikVet won third place for $1,000.

TEEF! was launched in May 2019 after 10 years of research and clinical studies to prove probiotic supplementation can benefit pets’ dental health. The company’s products feature Protekin42™, a patented prebiotic formula developed by Emily Stein, Ph.D, co-founder of TEEF! The product is available in a powder format for use as a water enhancer.

In the past, TEEF! has participated in startup accelerator programs such as Purina’ Pet Care Innovation Prize program, making the top 5 companies for its 2020 cohort, as well as Leap Venture Studios’ inaugural bootcamp, which featured women entrepreneurs in the pet industry.

Stay up to date on news about the pet food processing industry on our News page.