Debbie Phillips-DonaldsonDebbie Phillips-Donaldson is editor-in-chief of Petfood Industry magazine and Petfood Forum.From the Author - Page 62Pet Food MarketRiding the grain-free petfood wavePet owners spent US$1.7 billion on grain-free petfood products at US pet specialty stores from September 2012 to September 2013, according to GfK. That represents a 28% spike in sales at the 11,000+ US outlets tracked by GfK, which includes national and regional pet store chains and independent pet shops.Pet Food MarketPetfood volume flat in 2013, new feed survey showsThe volume of petfood produced globally in 2013 grew less than 1% over 2012, from 20.5 million tons to 20.7 million, according to the just released 2014 Alltech Global Feed Survey. That's slightly less than the 1% growth reported for production of feed for all species, from 954 million tons in 2012 to 963 million in 2013. Petfood makes up only about 2% of that global total.Pet Food MarketFirst petfood M&A deal of 2014 portends more to comeThe petfood and pet care industries have been a hotbed of merger and acquisition (M&A) activity for several years now; in fact, even during the recession, that activity picked up, unlike in most other industries. Thus, last week's announcement that Nestlé Purina PetCare had acquired Zuke's Performance Pet Nutrition, a maker of natural, functional treats, came as no real surprise to anyone in or watching our industry.Pet Food MarketPetfood quality, pet health top purchasing drivers, mirroring human food trendsA new survey of dog owners by a UK-based pet supplies website shows the quality of petfood outweighs costs for many pet parents, echoing ongoing premiumization in the US petfood market and mirroring purchasing drivers for human food. Conducted online by GJW Titmuss from October to December 2013 and responded to by 675 dog owners, the survey showed 61% of the owners consider quality the most important factor when choosing a dog food, versus only 9% choosing cost.Pet Food MarketMedia perpetuating petfood safety myths, misconceptionsAnother day/month/year, another media report on petfood safety with misleading, out-of-context or downright inaccurate information. Since the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) released the proposed preventive control rule for animal feed (including petfood) in late October as part of the Food Safety Modernization Act (FSMA), it's been big news throughout mainstream media. Unfortunately, it's difficult to see how some of the news being disseminated is at all helpful to pet owners, let alone the petfood industry.Pet Food Market2014 human food trends for petfood to watchIs the next big thing in petfood based on a relatively old thing? In the December issue of Pet Product News International, David Lummis of Packaged Facts speculated that the next petfood trend could be “biologically appropriate.” This harks back to a term and acronym that were widely used about a decade ago, BARF (biologically appropriate raw food), when the raw petfood segment was getting started.ProductionA cause to consider: promoting the benefits of pet ownershipEvidence that owning a pet provides human health benefits continues to mount: A recent study by Rebecca Johnson, an associate professor at the University of Missouri Sinclair School of Nursing, College of Veterinary Medicine and director of the school's Research Center for Human-Animal Interaction, shows that having a pet can lower cortisol, the stress hormone, in aging adults, while increasing oxytocin, prolactin and norepinephrine (hormones related to joy, nurturing and relaxation).Pet Food MarketLooking into the 2014 petfood crystal ballI don't really have a crystal ball (and I probably wouldn't trust it if I had one). Nor can I claim to predict, with full confidence, what will happen in the global petfood industry next year. But I can make a fairly informed speculation about the issues and events that may affect petfood in 2014. In no particular order of conviction or chronology:Pet Food MarketPetfood industry can help shape FSMA preventive control ruleWhile the Food Safety Modernization Act (FSMA) overall and, specifically, its recently proposed preventive control rule for animal feed represent a paradigm shift in how petfood will be regulated, the petfood industry has a rare -- if rushed -- opportunity to have a say in how the final rule will read. Yes, believe it or not, the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) wants your input.Pet Food MarketPetfood mergers and acquisitions poised to reshape the marketPetfood is a concentrated, top-heavy market, with the top two companies alone (Mars Petcare and Nestlé Purina PetCare) accounting for nearly 50% of sales. The top 30 companies comprise at least 70% of the market (see p. XX). Much of that concentration is due to continued merger and acquisition (M&A) activity, which never really slowed down during the global recession and has really heated up in the past few years. Expect it to continue this year and beyond.Pet Food MarketHow global business leaders view sustainability, including consumer influence"You can't compartmentalize sustainability anymore everything is interrelated." So said Richard Edelman, CEO of his namesake public relations firm, as part of the "UN Global Compact Accenture CEO Study on Sustainability 2013," conducted by the United Nations and Accenture (aPet Food Market2014 human food trends that could affect petfoodAt last week's Food Ingredients Europe in Frankfurt, Germany, an annual show described by organizer's as the "global meeting place for all stakeholders in the food ingredients industry," Innova Market Insights introduced its top 10 food and beverage trends for 2014. While not all apply to petfood (and only five of the 10 included descriptions), some might be worth considering for petfood manufacturers and marketers.Previous PagePage 62 of 81Next Page
