U.S. and Canada: Page 72

AFIA Pet Food Conference draws 25 percent higher attendance in 2013

The American Feed Industry Association hosted its annual Pet Food Conference, along with the Poultry Protein & Fat Council, at the International Production and Processing Expo, drawing 25 percent higher attendance than in 2012. The day-long conference featured a variety of experts discussing topics impacting today’s petfood and petfood ingredient manufacturer.

Sustain petfood growth by connecting to emerging consumer groups

While pet ownership and petfood sales are both growing briskly in many developing regions, such as Latin America and Eastern Europe, and in individual countries like Brazil and China, developed markets have seen slow to no growth in recent years. Can longtime pet powers like the US return to previous growth levels?

Pet Food Market

Petfood production data show how and where market is growing

A new global feed tonnage report from Alltech, combined with 2012 data from Euromonitor, speaks volumes about growth in the global petfood market. (Cue groans at that "volume" pun now.) And it shows that, as with petfood sales, the markets growing the fastest are those in Latin America, Eastern Europe and, to a lesser extent, Asia.

Spring Naturals donates US$10,000 to animal organizations in past year

Spring Naturals brand of dog dinners and dog treats has donated more than US$10,000 to various animal organizations since debuting in the petfood market in January 2012. As part of a partnership with Daily Kibble, Spring Naturals' Share the Love campaign allowed fans to submit their information and an animal rescue group of their choice for the chance to win one of two prize packages.

Market Trends and Reports

Zoomark International confirms 60 percent of registrants from abroad

Zoomark International, an exhibition of pet products and accessories, has announced that registration so far indicates that more than 60 percent of companies registered are coming from abroad. Registrants for the pet products show, which takes place in Italy, are predominately from Great Britain, the US, Canada, Brazil and China.

Canine Health Foundation seeks applicants for dog bloat grant

The American Kennel Club’s Canine Health Foundation is seeking applications from researchers interested in gastrointestinal physiology for US$250,000 grants to promote research into fatal bloat condition in dogs. Researchers interested in seeking funding from the grant must submit a letter of intent by March 18.

Small animal, pet bird ownership on rise in US, report finds

Ownership of small animals, birds and fish as pets is on the rise in the US, according to a new report from market research firm Packaged Facts, which suggests pet industry retailers may benefit from this rebound. The most popular small animal in the US is rabbits; in 2012, 4.2 million rabbits lived in US households.

Pedigree Feeding Project searching for shelters in US communities

Petfood manufacturer Pedigree Brand is partnering with Grammy award-winning country singer Miranda Lambert to kick-off a nationwide US search for the next communities to benefit from the Pedigree Feeding Project initiative, which supplies participating shelters with 100 percent of their core dog food needs for free. The Pedigree Feed Project initiative first began in 2012 in Nashville, Tennessee, USA, and Chicago, Illinois, USA, to provide dog food to shelters so that the shelters can focus more on finding homes for their animals.

AVMA releases latest US pet ownership demographic information

The American Veterinary Medical Association recently released its US Pet Ownership & Demographics Sourcebook, compiled based off a survey conducted every five years. According to the survey, conducted in 2012 and based off of numbers from December 31, 2011, the percentage of households that made no trips at all to a veterinarian between 2006 and 2011 rose 8 percent for dog owners and 24 percent for cat owners.

Market Trends and Reports

Lincoln Bark donates US$4,000 to help homeless animals in 2012

Pet treat maker Lincoln Bark made roughly US$4,000 in charitable donations to nonprofits and dog rescues throughout the US in fiscal 2012. The three main recipients of Lincoln Bark’s donations were PAWS Chicago, The Anti-Cruelty Society and the Fido Friendly magazine “Get Your Licks on Route 66” adoption tour.

Petfood predictions for 2013

What's ahead in the new year for petfoods? A number of issues, both at the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) and the Association of American Feed Control Officials(AAFCO) levels, seem to have lingered on for years. That's not terribly surprising, as by its nature the regulatory process is "deliberate" (i.e., "slow").

US East Coast port strike temporarily averted

The threat of a strike by longshoremen at 15 ports on the US East Coast, which would have likely increased shipping costs, has been temporarily averted, according to Global Development & Management LLC, which helps petfood manufacturers establish export markets. The International Longshoremen's Association and the Maritime Alliance agreed to extend the current contract until January 28, 2013.

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