Pet Food Manufacturing

Brief Excerpt from Industry Overview Chapter:

Companies in this industry manufacture food for dogs and cats, using grains, oilseed products, and meat products. Major companies include divisions of Colgate-Palmolive (Hill's Pet Nutrition); General Mills (Blue Buffalo Pet Products); JM Smucker (Big Heart Pet Brands); Mars (Iams, Pedigree, and Royal Canin), and Nestlé Purina PetCare (all based in the US); along with Affinity Petcare (Spain), Heristo (Germany), and Unicharm (Japan).

COMPETITIVE LANDSCAPE

Pet ownership drives demand. The profitability of individual companies depends heavily on effective marketing. Large companies have advantages of scale in manufacturing, marketing, and distribution. Small companies can compete effectively by offering specialized products or by serving a local market. The US pet food manufacturing industry is highly concentrated: the eight largest companies account for about 75% of sales.

PRODUCTS, OPERATIONS & TECHNOLOGY

Major products include dry and semi moist cat food, which accounts for about 10% of industry revenue, followed by complete dairy cattle and swine feed supplements, concentrates, and premixes at nearly 10% of industry revenue. Other products include canned dog food, canned cat food, and specialty pet feed.