Pet foods, and the ingredients constituting them, constantly evolve as consumer needs change, supply chains shift and other market factors influence product development.
For example, “premium” used to mean a product commanded a certain price level over standard or value-based products in the same sub-category. As some grocery-mass channel pet food brands figured out how to offer many of the same ingredients and product features found in premium products, that pricing difference began to lose relevance; the rise of premium private label products has only accelerated that.
The same goes for functional, health-related pet food claims. Health, including preventive health management, has become a cornerstone of premiumization, said Sahiba Puri, global insight manager, pet care, for Euromonitor — such that health claims now appear on pet food products in multiple categories and across all price tiers. To many pet owners, health = premium.
During Petfood Forum Asia 2025, Puri presented data on online SKUs for the top global pet food claims. “Natural” and “healthy” lead the way at 1,282 and 1,058, respectively. Those rather general ones are followed by more specific and functional claims such as “grain free” and “high protein,” each at 748, and “good source of vitamins” (618).
These have tended to remain relatively stable for several years, probably because pet owners have become familiar with the products and are satisfied with how the foods meet their pets' needs. These claims also follow what consumers want in their own foods. When Euromonitor asked 4,000+ consumers globally about influential product features, more pet owners than non-owners said they look for health and nutritional properties when buying human food.
“High protein” presents an interesting case of a pet food claim mirroring what many people seek in their own diets. Other claims like “high meat” or “fresh meat” seemingly stand in for that protein demand in the eyes of some pet owners; and it keeps ratcheting up.
“Any level of fresh meat, that was a premium diet,” said Will Henry, industry expert, looking back two decades. Today, a 30% inclusion level of fresh meat is the nominal industry standard, he added. “You start talking about inclusion rates above 50%, 70%, where you’re getting at least close to that 50-50 range of fresh meat and other [ingredients], those are going to be considered premium diets, because they’re a more complex diet. There’s a lot more in the eyes of the consumer.”
Whether it’s fresh meat, high protein or something else, functional and other health-related claims are likely to remain popular, as pet owners increasingly consider nutrition foundational to their pets’ health and health the underpinning of premiumization.
