Tail-wagging trends: what’s next for the pet food industry

If you’ve ever come home to a chewed up leather shoe, you already know that some dogs will eat anything.

Their owners, however, are pickier, and are increasingly focused on what they’re putting into their pet’s bowl each day.

Market research company Mintel has found some clear trends emerging in the pet food space, per Pet Food Processing:

• Personalized offerings: Whether targeting weight loss, increased protein, or added fiber, personalized pet foods are becoming more popular, to the point where it’s overwhelming — 54% of US consumers say there are too many options in the pet food aisle.
• Natural ingredients: An increasing number of US pet owners (38%) want all-natural pet foods, with 23% specifically looking for limited ingredient lists.
• Sustainable practices: In the US, 61% of pet food buyers want brands to limit environmental impacts and 74% believe companies should be more transparent about farming practices.

As it turns out, priorities in the pet food industry closely mirror those in human food — with even more innovation happening in the pet product space.

Of new product launches between 2019 and 2023, a third came from entirely new brands and companies, a significantly higher rate than in human food.

Pawsitive outlook

Owners are increasingly willing to splurge on food for their pets as they would for a family member.

Over the past decade, US owners increased the amount of money spent annually on their pets by 54%, up from $631 in 2011 to $969 in 2021.

Plus, global pet food sales hit ~$134B in 2023 and 66% of US households own at least one pet — that’s ~86.9m households.

And pet parents might have even more options soon to spoil their cats and dogs: Pet DNA testing is gaining steam with 45% of French owners ages 16 to 34 willing to pay for testing to find the healthiest diet for their pet.