Our Story

Hi. I’m Hiro, co-founder of PhytoSmart. I grew up in a family of veterinarians in Japan where there were always animals of one sort or another underfoot. My mother used to prepare all the food that was fed to our pets and the animals that boarded with us from fresh ingredients bought daily at the local farms and market stands. It was time consuming, I know,because my job was to pick up and deliver all the ingredients each day from the different farms before school in time for her to prepare the day’s food. But, we knew exactly what our animals we were eating. So, I didn’t follow my family’s path to become a vet, but I did become a scientist who is always looking for better solutions to solve problems. I was experimenting with algae when I became intrigued by the variety of algal species that offer nutritional benefits. I pondered how and to whom I could make these nutrients available.

Hi. I’m Deena, the other force behind SmartZYME™. My love affair with animals began when I got my first pet, a French Bull Dog, when I was 3 years old. I named him Romeo. We were inseparable until I left for college and my memories of him are the happiest! Over the years, I’ve owned many more pets; dogs and cats and some rescues. I always think back to Romeo who taught me that I always want to make pets part of my family.

Drawing on our lifelong love of pets and interest in their nutrition and health, our mission became to develop a nutrient from algae that would positively impact pet health. Much work and many sleepless nights led us to a species of golden algae that has a very high content of DHA, the most essential Omega 3 fatty acid. This species is more difficult to grow because instead of sunlight, it needs a different energy source to flourish. This led us to design a completely unique sterile system to grow and harvest our algae culture.

After much more work and many more sleepless nights, we have perfected our brand of DHA that is a fresh pet vital DHA nutrient. SmartZYME™ mixes easily into wet or dry pet food, can be dispensed into aquarium tanks for better fish nutrition and improves metabolic imbalances in horses and farm animals, too.

We know many pet owners are already using fish oil to supplement their pets’ DHA Omega 3 needs. But jugs of fish oil are hard to manage and when they get old can become a neurotoxin that can greatly damage pet brain health. That’s why it is important to us that SmartZYME™ is a fresh food. And the benefits to your pet multiplies not just by eating it, but because our special process keeps the DHA producing enzymes active and intact to continue to produce DHA in their body long after they eat it. Your pet will love the taste and say thank you!

We developed SmartZYME™ with love and our pets’ well being in mind. Now we are grateful to share it’s amazing benefits with your beloved furry family members.