On the call: Colgate-Palmolive Co.

By The Associated Press

Colgate-Palmolive Co.'s Hill's pet food business accounts for 13 percent of company revenue, but Hill's volume slipped for the fifth quarter in a row.

During a conference call with investors about Colgate's second-quarter earnings, executives said they shrank the sizes of certain dry pet food packaging, which should ultimately mean that pet owners will have to buy the food more often. A delay in shipping the products to Russia cut volume by 1.5 percent, said Bina Thompson, the company's vice president of investor relations.

Sales of Hill's brands, which include Hill's Science Diet and Hill's Prescription Diet, fell 7.5 percent.

QUESTION: Why did sales and volume fall at Hill's in the quarter?

RESPONSE: Hill's comprehensive resizing and repricing initiatives also impacted volumes during the quarter (because) dry package sizes were reduced in key markets globally during the first six months. (The) adverse impact upon initial shipment of smaller sizes is expected to be offset by a shortened consumer purchase cycle over time. Considering implementation timing and an average consumer purchase cycle generally in the 50- to 60-day range, this transition was not completed by the end of the quarter. ...

So looking forward we expect unit consumption to be increasing sequentially for the balance of the year, while volume as the result of the downsizing is expected to be flat for the next quarter and the full year.