Pet food companies reporting less-than-stellar financial results. Creeping inflation. Low levels of buzz and innovation at large pet trade shows. As I write this, the pet food market is still holding its own, but industry polls conducted over the past several months, while informal and unscientific, point to a growing sense that trade wars and economic uncertainty may be starting to take their toll.
For example, in a poll posed during a May webinar presented by the American Pet Products Association, participants identified pet food/treats as the product category that is or could be most impacted by tariffs, named by 37%. Another poll on PetfoodIndustry.com posted in mid-April showed 40% of the more than 200 respondents saying they thought tariffs would have a significant impact on the pet food industry. Another 20% thought tariffs would have a severe impact, and 27% said some impact. Just 13% responded that tariffs would have very little to no impact on pet food.
More recently, a September LinkedIn poll showed 58% of respondents believed economic uncertainty is the largest barrier to pet food innovation now, followed by business costs at nearly 35% and consumer caution at 7%. In a mid-2025 poll of pet food professionals visiting PetfoodIndustry.com, 44% of the 318 respondents selected economic pressures or inflation impacts as the concern commanding most of their businesses’ attention.
Shifting consumer preferences, which could be driven at least partially by inflation, tariff anxiety and other economic factors, garnered a 23.2% response. Supply chain disruptions and regulatory compliance issues each received a 13.6% response. Also clocking in were labor shortages at 5.6%.
Consequently, nearly 35% of the respondents characterized their companies’ financial performance as “mixed results,” indicating strong performance in some areas with challenges in others. And for some respondents, challenges have reigned to date in 2025, leading to 15.9% reporting performance below expectations and 7% significantly underperforming. On the positive side, 24.4% respondents reported their companies are meeting expectations, and 18.1% reported exceeded projections.
In response, the majority of respondents, 88%, reported revising their original 2025 business plans at some level. Just under half of that, 41.5%, said they’ve made only minor revisions, while 28% reported moderate ones; 18.7% have made major overhauls.
With the U.S. and global economic landscapes still shifting, it’s unlikely business caution will ease or industry sentiments will improve, at least not in the short term.
