The Spanish dog and cat food market ranks among the largest in Europe. Many of the attendees at the inaugural edition of the Congreso de la Industria de Pet Food en Europa (CIPEU) (European Pet Food Industry Conference) worked for the companies that make the food to supply the growing Spanish pet food market. CIPEU was held Sept. 27-28 in Zaragoza, Spain.
Spanish pet food companies help feed Spain’s 9,313,000 pet dogs in 2022, the fourth largest population in Europe, and 5,859,000 pet cats, Europe’s eighth largest. Those figures come from the European Pet Food Industry Federation (FEDIAF) “Facts and Figures 2022” report.
Feeding those pets is profitable. Analysts with Mordor Intelligence estimated that Spain’s pet food market size will reach US$1.71 billion in 2023. They forecast that to rise to US$2.19 billion by 2028, with a compound annual growth rate of 5%.
Another group of market researchers with Statista estimated that Spanish pet food retail sales would reach US$2.0 billion in 2023 and grow annually by 5.18% from 2023-2028.
That pet food was sold in a range of retail outlets from supermarkets to pet specially stores to veterinarian’s offices. Retail sales channels were affected by the pandemic, and the repercussions still influence sales.
“E-commerce exploded in Spain due to the pandemic growing by 25% in 2020 in this sector,” Christina Carloza, a U.S. International Trade Administration advisor, wrote in a market intelligence report. “This channel became very popular with consumers during the crisis, as it offers lower prices and the added value of home delivery. However, specialized stores located inside of the large supermarkets also gained ground against the small neighborhood stores. There are 5,400 points of sale in Spain of products and services for pets, including both pet’s shops, with approximately 3,000 outlets and 2,400 veterinary health centers co-located with a shop.”
Pet food companies based in Spain
In those retail outlets, as in much of the world, Nestle Purina PetCare and Mars Petcare hold strong positions in Spain. However, Spain has homegrown pet food companies as well. The following companies appear in Petfood Industry’s Top Companies database.
Annual revenue 2022: US$47,000,000
Dibaq Mascotas is the pet care division of the Spanish-based Dibaq Group. The company has production facilities and sales offices worldwide, with a presence in more than 50 countries. In addition to its own brands, the company also manufactures private-label products. Besides pet food, Dibaq Group is involved in aquaculture and horse feed.
Annual revenue 2022: US$136,000,000
Bynsa Pets is a private-label manufacturer and the manufacturer of supermarket chain Mercadona's Compy brand of dog and cat food. Compy is the leading brand in Spain. Annual production capacity is 150,000 metric tons. The company also manufactures a wide range of snacks for dogs and cats under the Bobby and Lucy brands.
Annual revenue 2022: US$520,000,000
Affinity Petcare, subsidiary of Agrolimen SA, is a leading company in dog and cat nutrition in Spain and also has relevant positions in other European countries. In addition to its Barcelona, Spain, headquarters, Affinity has offices in Paris, Milan, Snetterton, UK, and São Paulo. The company supplies product to more than 20 countries.
Annual revenue 2022: US$753,000,000
Agrolimen SA is a Barcelona, Spain-based firm whose subsidiary Affinity Petcare is a leading European supplier of foods for dogs and cats. Agrolimen SA also operates a joint venture with British-based raw food manufacturer Natures Menu, through Affinity Petcare, and owns US-based raw food producer Nature's Variety.
