The recent US President's Cancer Panel Report , which urged consumers to minimize their cancer risk by eating organic food, gave an indirect boost to the organic petfood trend, according to Zootoo .
Organic petfood sales from 2009 saw an increase due to the organic trend in human food in addition to the humanization of pets, reaching US$84 million -- up almost 10% from sales in 2008, according to the Organic Trade Association 's 2010 Organic Industry Survey. The panel report's emphasis on avoiding foods produced using chemicals and pesticides may help organic petfood sales continue to increase this year.
However, the OTA acknowledged that organic food can only assure the potential for less toxic residue in food, meaning organic petfood is not necessarily healthier than conventional petfood.