NEW YORK (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 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%.