NEW YORK, June 23 (Reuters) - General Mills ( GIS ) is

introducing a fresh version of its Blue Buffalo pet food for

dogs, aimed at competing with popular brands such as Freshpet ( FRPT )

and venture capital-backed The Farmer's Dog.

The Minnesota-based packaged food maker is entering the

fresh pet food market because it projects that over the next

decade it will soar in retail sales to $10 billion, from a

little over $3 billion currently, said Liz Mascolo, the segment

president of General Mills' ( GIS ) North America pet business. Retail

sales in U.S. pet food total about $53 billion, Mascolo said.

Fresh pet food is marketed as minimally processed products

without preservatives that sometimes are fit for human

consumption. General Mills ( GIS ) expects the fresh version of its Blue

Buffalo brand will be in retail stores later this year.

"The reason why it's growing and the reason we're interested

in it ... is the humanization of the pet food category," Mascolo

said. "What I mean by that, is people are increasingly treating

pets like other members of family, with birthday parties (for

example).

"We talk with pet parents, and they're looking for food that

looks, smells and feels like real human food," Mascolo said.

Mascolo said that dog owners will sometimes combine pricier

fresh dog food, stored in the refrigerator or freezer, with

cheaper traditional kibble.

General Mills ( GIS ), which entered the pet food category in 2018

with its $8 billion acquisition of Blue Buffalo, is also

bringing European brand Edgard & Cooper to U.S. PetSmart stores

in July.

The company, which also makes brands such as Betty Crocker

cake mixes and Progresso soups, acquired Edgard & Cooper last

year. The high-end pet food company at the time had 100 million

euro in sales.

In the nine months ended February 23, General Mills' ( GIS ) pet

business reported net sales rising 1%.