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Pet Food Trends in 2017
22 Feb 2017Premium health products for pets
Courtesy of Nutritional Outlook
Pet foods are now being formulated to address concerns near and dear to humans, including organic and non-GMO ingredients, “free from” options, and low-carb recipes. Especially clean label claims such as natural and/or “no additives/preservatives” are used to drive interest in natural and organic formulations.
Health claims also form a major marketing trend. More than 80% of global pet-food launches recorded by Innova Market Insights in September 2015–2016 were marketed on a health platform of some kind.
Most popular pet food claims
Vitamin- and mineral-related claims are used on over 23% of global launches and prove to be the most popular of active health claims for pet food.
The next most popular claims are digestive- or gut-health claims, used on 22% of global launches and addressing issues such as sensitive stomachs in dogs and also furball/hairball problems in cats. Probiotic and prebiotic ingredients are popularly marketed for these conditions.
Omega-3 fatty acids are included in just over 15% of global launches followed by skin health with over 14% of global introductions featuring claims related to skin health.
Allergy-related claims are also very popular. There has been a strong rise in gluten-free and grain-free formulations for both dogs and cats. More than one-fifth of global launches were gluten-free, and nearly a quarter of dog-food launches alone were gluten-free.
Interest in protein content in pet food also mirrors trends the human food and-drinks industry. Just over 30% of pet food launches between September 2015–2016 featured “high in” or “source of” protein claims, up from just 20% a year previously. There has also been ongoing interest in alternative and more exotic protein sources, such as game meat, bison, and seafood.