Summary of pet food growth in emerging markets
- Global pet adoption grew 13 percent driving rising pet food demand
- Emerging markets show strong potential due to low packaged food penetration
- Rising incomes enable more owners to afford higher quality pet nutrition
- Southeast Asia leads expansion with Vietnam and Philippines reporting rapid growth
- Thailand and Dominican Republic record high projected annual pet food growth
Humans have kept pets for centuries. Yet now, the pet food market is on the rise, both changing and expanding.
Why? Well, in part, growth is being driven by the ‘humanisation’ trend, where owners increasingly see pets as family members.
Another factor, however, is the growth of pet ownership around the world. According to market analytics company Mordor Intelligence, pet adoption rates grew by 13% globally between 2017 and 2022.
In particular, pet food is seeing strong potential for growth in emerging markets, where there is most room for such growth.
Why is pet food growing in emerging markets?
Pet food in emerging markets is already seeing significant growth, particularly in e-commerce, according to Mordor Intelligence. Yet growth in these markets has far from reached its full potential.
Pet food has substantial prospects for growth in these markets, explains Sahiba Puri, global insight manager for petcare at market analytics company Euromonitor International, simply because market penetration has not been, until now, that significant.
“These countries typically have lower penetration of packaged pet food, leaving substantial headroom for expansion.”
For example, India has the world’s fourth-largest dog population, but fewer than 10% of these dogs are fed through packaged food.
“As awareness of complete and balanced pet nutrition increases, adoption of packaged pet food is expected to accelerate, driving category penetration and long‑term market expansion."
Furthermore, says Mordor Intelligence, rising disposable incomes in developing economies have led to a rise in pet ownership, and in particular, more consumers being able to afford premium pet food.
Which markets are expected to expand the most?
According to Euromonitor’s Puri, it is countries in southeast Asia where the expansion of pet food will be most pronounced.
Vietnam and the Philippines are likely to significantly fuel pet food’s global expansion, with a CAGR in the sector of around 10% each until 2030 in terms of volume growth.
In terms of value growth, Thailand will lead the pack, with a CAGR of 12% up to 2030.
“This growth comes from a smaller base of absolute sales and consumption,” points out Puri. Nevertheless, “such markets offer significant room to scale”.
Other markets are also expected to see growth. According to the US’s Foreign Agricultural Service, the pet food market in the Dominican Republic is likely to see 12% of growth a year.
As reports of the growth potential for emerging markets proliferate, major players are starting to take notice.
While Nestlé, the world’s biggest food company, already operates in emerging markets, it sees such markets as a key growth opportunity.
Emerging markets hold significant potential, as pet ownership, and with it, awareness of the nutritional needs of pets, rises.
