North America leads the way . . .
North America leads the market for premium petfood, with approximately 65% of homes having pets – this represents about 86.9 million families (2023-24 National Pet Owners Survey – American Pet Products Assoc (APPA)). Premium pet products are both popular and mainstream across this population, with 71% of pet owners treating their pets as ‘beloved’ members of the family.
Despite being a mature market in the US, the premium petfood market is growing consistently – it’s driven by increasing pet humanisation, and a growing awareness and interest in pet health and nutrition. There is a shift from ‘high quality’ premium products, to ‘humanised’ products, with a lot of focus on trends that are popular across the human food market; clean label, minimally processed, nutritional ingredients, natural foods, sustainability and upcycling.
Since COVID years, pet owners are investing more in specialty pet foods that incorporate innovative ingredients. This points to new product launches offering profitable opportunities for both start-ups and established businesses in the next five years.
Pet owners prefer natural food brands and functional products . . .
Driven by humanisation trends, 44% of pet owners give priority to their pet’s food over their own, particularly focusing on qualities they tend to look for in their own food like all-natural and functional ingredients (Euromonitor Voice of the Consumer: Lifestyles Survey, 2023).
The choice for ‘natural’ products supports whole ingredients, while avoiding anything that is heavily processed, including refined grains, fibre sources and byproducts. The increased consumer interest in natural formulations is also seeing a rise in organic products that are made using ingredients grown without pesticides, synthetic fertilisers, hormones or antibiotics.
Pet food is also becoming a tool for personalised and proactive health management. Functional ingredients that support the overall health of pets, as well as addressing specific conditions like skin health, joint health, improved digestion and wellbeing are set to be popular for 2025. On trend ingredients include probiotics, glucosamine, omega-3s, health-aiding spices like turmeric and even cannabidiol (CBD). Pet food manufacturers are offering products tailored to breeds, age and size of pets.
Sustainability and upcycling have popular consumer appeal . . .
Globally the rise in government requirements and new legislations around sustainability, means pet nutrition is opening up to new opportunities. Brands that are committed to sustainability, transparency and ethical sourcing are increasingly found in pet food aisles, boasting insect-based proteins through to upcycled ingredients.
According to Euromonitor surveys, pet owners are more concerned about sustainability than those who don’t own pets. With consumers desiring to feed their pets according to a reduced impact on the environment, sustainable ingredients and manufacturing practices are key for pet food producers. Certifications are becoming increasingly valuable to formalise sustainability claims.
This sits well with upcycling as a source of secure ingredients – not only do upcycled ingredients offer access to nutrient dense sources of proteins via quality fish and meat products, they also provide an outlet for materials that can be costly to dispose of.
Trust in suppliers is key . . .
As premium pet food options become the new norm to meet evolving expectations of pet owners, brands need to deliver value by featuring healthful ingredients—from functional to upcycled foods, personalising to the age and health needs of pets and embracing key sustainability actions, whether through ingredient sourcing or packaging. To meet consumer requirements for high quality ingredients, it is important to partner with a supplier you can trust, to provide strength under consumer inspection.
At Taranaki Bio Extracts we offer our Bonefide Gold range of premium ingredients for pet nutrition – our human grade beef bone broth is crafted using 100% New Zealand origin, export quality grass-fed beef bones, in a human grade kitchen. It has high protein content and is a naturally rich source of nutrients. To discover the gold in our offering view; https://taranakibioextracts.com/pet-nutrition-ingredients-range/bonefide-gold-pet-nutrition/
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