Pet humanisation changing pet food sales, IBISWorld
The amount of money Australians are willing to spend on pet food is expected to rise as more pet owners continue to treat their animals like family members.
According to market researcher, IBISWorld, Australian pet owners are becoming increasingly concerned about the quality and nutritional value of what they are feeding their pets.
IBISWorld Senior Analyst, Sam Johnson, says the concern comes as pet humanisation continues to rise.
“Pet humanisation – whereby pets are being treated more like humans than animals – is becoming increasingly common,” Johnson said.
“As Australian consumers become progressively more concerned about their own health, particularly in relation to their diets, they are also becoming more concerned about the diet of their pets.”
“Furthermore, pet owners are growing increasingly concerned about purchasing and consuming products that have their sources identified, as well as ensuring these products are made from ingredients perceived to be natural and of high nutritional value. This trend is giving rise to new markets for pet food and other pet-related products.”
IBISWorld says pet ownership in Australia is declining but sales of premium pet food is expected to increase and boost the value of pet food production in Australia to $1.7 billion in 2017-18, up from $1.5 billion five years ago.
Australian pet food producers are yet to take advantage of this growth market with pet food from France, Hungry and New Zealand often sold at higher prices due to their inclusion of premium ingredients.
“Despite the push of the Australian Made campaign, which encourages consumers to buy domestically produced products, IBISWorld expects the value of pet food imports to increase at an annualised 6.9% over the five years through 2017-18,” Johnson said.
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