Who dominates global pet food market? Summary
- Global pet food market dominated by Nestlé Purina and Mars Petcare
- Nestlé Purina leads reaching $22.5bn globally
- Mars Petcare generates $22bn revenue and owns major global brands
- Hills General Mills and JM Smucker hold smaller but notable shares
- Meatly advances cultivated pet food production and targets wider market access
The pet food market is growing around the world. As consumers increasingly see pets as fully fledged family members, demand for premium products ratchets up and the category expands.
Who are the biggest players in this market? Which companies dominate food for pets?
1. Nestlé Purina Pet Care
Pet food is something of a duopoly, with the market dominated by two FMCG giants.
Nestlé is one of these major pet food companies. The world’s biggest food company is also one of the biggest companies in pet food, with a similar market share to Mars.
Petcare is one of Nestlé’s largest categories: as of 2025, it was the company’s second largest, making up just over 20% of sales.
Nestlé Purina is responsible for brands such as Fancy Feast, Gourmet and Friskies.
According to statistics website Statista, Nestlé Purina had an annual turnover of $22.5bn (€19.1bn) in 2024, slightly edging out Mars Petcare.
2. Mars Petcare
Mars Petcare is the other dominant player in the global pet food market, and is responsible for a significant chunk of pet food sales around the world.
According to consultancy Boston Consulting Group, Petcare is also the largest division within Mars itself – it accounted for 59% of the company’s sales in 2023.
Mars Petcare owns brands such as Whiskas, Pedigree, Sheba and Dreamies.
According to Statista, Mars Petcare had an annual turnover of $22bn (€18.7bn) in 2024.
3. Hills Pet Nutrition
Hills Pet Nutrition is a US pet food company. As its name suggests, its portfolio of brands is nutritionally-focused.
For example, issues such as urinary care and digestive care often take the fore in its products.
According to Statista, Hills Pet Nutrition is the third largest global supplier of pet food, with an annual turnover of $4.5bn (€3.8bn) in 2024.
4. General Mills
Global US food company General Mills also has a significant presence in pet food.
Better known for brands such as Betty Crocker and Cookie Crisp, General Mills’ is part of the pet food market through its pet food brand Blue Buffalo, which it acquired in 2018. As of now, this is General Mills’ only pet food brand.
Through this brand alone, General Mills saw an annual turnover of $2.4bn (€2.1bn) in 2024, according to Statista.
5. JM Smucker
JM Smucker is a global US food company with a range of pet food brands.
Among these brands is Milk-Bone dog snacks and Meow Mix cat food.
In 2023, the company sold several key pet food brands, including Nutrish, 9 Lives and Kibbles ‘n Bits, to FMCG company Post Holdings, reducing its pet food portfolio.
JM Smucker’s pet food brands saw an annual turnover of $1.7bn (€1.5bn) in 2024, according to Statista.
Wildcard entry: Meatly
While Meatly is not as big a player in pet food overall as the others on this list, it is one of the most significant in cultivated pet food (pet food made from cultivated meat rather than traditional meat).
The UK start-up was the first cultivated meat company in Europe to gain regulatory approval.
Unlike most cultivated meat start-ups, the company has reached the market, supplying cultivated pet food to retailer Pets at Home. The company is still engaged in R&D, however, aiming to reach price parity with chicken.
The next step for Meatly is scaling production and aiming to sell more widely.
Want to learn more about pet food? Check out our Performance Petfood broadcast on March 31, as part of our Positive Nutrition series.
As pet owners become more attuned to health and wellness, the demand for functional pet foods is rising.
This session explores how ingredients like microbiome modulators, botanicals, and targeted vitamins are being used to support immunity, digestion, cognition, and overall vitality in pets.
We’ll look at the science behind these ingredients and the opportunities they present for innovation in formulation and product development.
