The Vet Who Built Better Food
Blog 4 of a 5 Blog Series
The Simple Food Project didn’t start as a business idea.
Dr. Bessent started out trying to help pets, not build a pet food business.
It started as a turning point.
Dr. Chris Bessent wasn’t trying to disrupt an industry or chase a trend. She was trying to help pets get better—really better. After decades in clinical practice, she watched it happen again and again: when fresh food hit the bowl, something changed.
Energy returned.
Digestion improved.
Chronic issues softened.
Food wasn’t an accessory to care.
It was often the missing piece.
When “Better Food” Still Wasn’t Practical
Dr. Bessent fed raw long before it was popular. She recommended it to clients. She saw the results firsthand.
Real, fresh, whole foods is the starting point for the Simple Food Project.
But she also saw the barriers:
Freezers full of dog food
Complicated prep
Short shelf life
High price tags that made consistency impossible
Real food worked—but not everyone could live with it.
So instead of lowering the bar, she asked a better question:
What if real food could actually fit into daily life?
Freeze-Dried: Raw Nutrition Without the Roadblocks
That question led her to freeze-drying—not as a shortcut, but as a solution.
Freeze-drying preserves food without cooking it into oblivion. Nutrients stay intact. Proteins remain whole. And the food becomes shelf-stable—no freezer required.
But Dr. Bessent didn’t stop there.
Freeze dried is where all the magic and nutrients happen.
She:
Designed her own freeze-dryers
Built in a pasteurization step to ensure safety
Avoided irradiation and high-pressure processing
Protected the integrity of raw food while making it practical
Raw food still works.
Freeze-drying just makes it accessible.
Built, Not Outsourced
Most pet food brands outsource manufacturing. Simple Food Project doesn’t.
Dr. Bessent wanted control—so she built it.
An 80,000 square-foot, FDA-registered, GMP-certified facility in Wisconsin. No co-packers. No compromises. Every recipe, ingredient, and label is overseen by the same veterinarian who formulated the food.
That level of ownership matters—because trust can’t be delegated.
100% Independent. 100% Vet-Owned.
Simple Food Project remains one of the only vet-owned, woman-founded pet food companies—and it’s still family-run.
Today, Dr. Bessent works alongside her daughter, carrying the mission forward without venture capital, outside pressure, or shortcuts.
Just a belief that pets deserve better food—and pet parents deserve options they can actually sustain.
Still Walking the Floor
Dr. Bessent didn’t step away once the company grew.
She’s still:
Educating pet parents
Teaching other veterinarians
Hosting webinars
Speaking at conferences
She’s still answering questions from the people feeding this food.
Because this was never just a product.
It was always a mission.
Serve your dog a bowl of happy.
Why This Matters to Us at Riverview Kennels
We carry Simple Food Project because it aligns with how we care for animals every day. We resonate with Dr. Bessent’s journey and values.
It’s:
Built by a veterinarian who understands biology—not marketing
Made from real food, not synthetic shortcuts
Shelf-stable and practical for real homes
More affordable than frozen subscription diets
And designed to support long-term health—not just hit minimum standards
In the next post, we’ll talk honestly about cost, convenience, and how Simple Food Project compares directly to Farmer’s Dog—so you can decide what makes the most sense for your home and your pet.
