Liza Soberano, the face of Prof. Bengal, talks about her cats

ACTRESS LIZA SOBERANO, who moved to Los Angeles to pursue international stardom, is doing a lot more in her new home. She’s recently taken in five cats (a mother and her kittens). On Nov. 6, at SM Mall of Asia (MOA) Seaside Boulevard, it was announced that she was the new face (hers appears on the packaging) of Prof. Bengal, a new product line focused on cats, from the same people who created Dr. Shiba (a line of dog products).

Prof. Bengal has two main lines: Kind Kibble and Paste Treats. Kind Kibble is a high-protein, grain-free dry food formulated for adult cats. It is said to provide complete and balanced nutrition, with 38% of its protein from animal sources to maintain muscle strength, energy, and overall wellness. The recipe is fortified with taurine, probiotics, vitamins, and minerals for full-body support.

Meanwhile, the Paste Treats are functional nutritional pastes created to make treat time beneficial for cats. Each variant has a dedicated purpose: Happy Tummy (digestion), Pro Immune (immunity), Silky Fur (skin and coat), Bye Bye Floof (hairball control), and Easy Peesy (urinary care). Each paste has its own formula developed with veterinary experts, using functional ingredients such as prebiotics, fish oil, taurine, cranberry powder, and natural fiber to support targeted health benefits.

These are particularly useful for Ms. Soberano who recalled taking the cats in sick. “The rewarding part was seeing them get healthy,” she said during a press conference at the Paüse Pet Lodge & Family Cafe at SM MOA Seaside Boulevard. “The most challenging is earning their trust. They were street cats. They probably went through a lot of hardship living on the street.”

Ms. Soberano is familiar with hardship. In a documentary by Sarah Bahbah titled Mind Your F**king Business released earlier this year, she opened up about her childhood marred by abuse and instability, from the collapse of her parents’ marriage to her own experiences in foster homes.

“When you rescue a cat, they’re not very trusting in the beginning. You have to really be patient and take the time to earn that trust. Once you do, they’re so loving, and they’re so sweet,” she said.

“I’m really obsessed with cats now,” she continued. “I never thought I would be a cat mom. I didn’t use to really like cats, but now I’m obsessed with them.”

In the Philippines, Ms. Soberano took care of a dog, who now lives with her in LA. She said that she had an easier time taking care of her dog here, what with the support system and hired help that stars can get here. Since moving to LA, she has taken on the full responsibility of taking care of all her pets. “It’s a huge responsibility,” she said. “You want to make sure that you have the resources, but also the time to dedicate towards them.”

TREATS HAVE TO TASTE GOOD
Meanwhile, Prof. Bengal founder Philipp Renner made a point on how the treats are not only beneficial, but also tasty (for the cats). “We have people who test them,” he said in an interview with BusinessWorld. Asked if the people tasted them, he laughed, and clarified, “We test them with hundreds of pets before we launch them. Palatability is one of the many things we have to test for.

“The cat either says, ‘f**ck off,’ and not touch it. Or the cat is kind of interested, or jumping on it. Then we score,” he explained.

He did say that the products have been developed with a Head of Product with experience in human nutrition. “Most of the products that we have are actually human-grade. We work with external experts, mostly vets, in order to validate the latest research, these papers on nutrition for pets.”

The tastiness of the treats is important, because the cats won’t get the necessary nutrition in the treats if they don’t like it. “The problem is, if the functional ingredients, if the level is too high, they don’t taste good. It’s effec-tively like a supplement for humans. If you were to put that in your mouth, it’s not going to taste good,” he said. “You have to find the right balance between enough ingredients that it works, but enough other stuff that it tastes good.”

Mr. Renner used to have a career in consultancy, but left that behind for the previous line he created, Dr. Shiba, which was launched in 2022. He has just one dog at the moment, but he grew up around cats. “I was kind of done with consultancy. I wanted to build a startup. I was looking at a lot of different options,” he said, citing pet care as a space that was growing strongly. For example, the functional pet treats were inspired by similar products in the West. He made the right call, with Dr. Shiba now present in 1,500 stores across the Philippines, Thailand, Singapore, Malaysia, Indonesia, and the UK. “We wanted to build an overall pet ecosystem.”

Prof. Bengal’s Cat Paste Treats and Kind Kibble for Cats are now available at dr-shiba.com, Lazada Mall, Shopee Mall, and TikTok Shop. — Joseph L. Garcia