Europe Pet Food Market

Europe Pet Food Market (2023 to 2028)

The European pet food market has been estimated to be valued at USD 23.83 billion in 2023 and is anticipated to reach a valuation of USD 27.82 billion by 2028 and is projected to grow at a CAGR of 3.15% during the forecast period from 2023 to 2028.

The increasing adoption of pets in Europe is driving the growth of the European pet food market. Many people are adopting pets for emotional support; older people and low financial status people have low interaction with other people, and living alone at house requires emotional support. The adoption of pets had increased post-pandemic due to increased pet humanization. Pet humanization includes incorporating pets into all human things, such as trips and healthcare with nutrition, driving the growth of Europe's pet food market size. According to the European Pet Food Federation, around 46% of households have at least a single pet. Due to the increased adoption of pets, pet food manufacturers are introducing premium products, which play a pivotal role in market growth. The adoption of urbanization is leading to the desire for pets in large households, which is expected to propel the growth of European pet food market revenue. 

Growing awareness of the animal companion is accelerating the growth of the Europe pet food market. People are aware that having pets at home helps manage depression and loneliness. Pets like dogs and cats also provide security to their owners and help them take care of the family. Pets keep children secure, which is gaining people's interest. These factors are raising the adoption rate in Europe, which influences the increase in the growth of the European pet food market. The increasing trend toward conventional dog food and fresh, healthy food is expected to create lucrative opportunities for the European pet food market. The ease of availability of pet foods in online retailing is expected to influence the market positively during the forecast period. 

The stringent government regulations for pet adoption, which are associated with animal neglect and cruelty, are hampering the adoption rate, which decreases the growth of the pet food market. According to PETA UK, around a million animals are observed under animal neglect and cruelty. According to a few studies, pets are also the victims in most child abuse cases. Another factor challenging the pet food market is habituating home food to the pets. Most pet owners habituate feeding their pets their food, hindering the pet food market size. The high feed and raw materials cost is also estimated to impede the market's growth.

Impact of COVID-19 on the European pet food market: 

The impact of the pandemic is severe on pets, as many people thought the spread of the virus increased with the animals during the pandemic. Some people gave up on their pets, and many people considered giving up on their pets to escape from the spread of COVID. However, many people vaccinated their pets after introducing vaccines to inhibit the spread. People are emotionally connected to their pets and do not leave them. Post-pandemic increased the adoption of pets due to humanization, which increased the sales of the pet food market. COVID-19 had a mixed impact on the European pet food market.

REPORT COVERAGE:

This research report on the European pet food market has been segmented and sub-segmented into the following categories.

Europe Pet Food Market - By Product:

• Dry Pet Food
• Wet Pet Food
• Veterinary Diet
• Treats/Snacks

The dry pet food segment dominated the European pet food revenue with a market share of 25% in 2022. However, frozen and freeze-dried pet food is gaining traction due to its longer shelf-life and is projected to have a significant growth rate in the forecast period. Changing lifestyles are allowing people to prefer frozen food for their pets. 

Europe Pet Food Market - By Ingredients:

• Animal Derivatives
• Plant derivatives
• Insect derivatives
• Cereals & Cereal by-products
• Fruits & Vegetables
• Fats & Oils
• Vitamins & Minerals
• Additives

The animal-derived segment held a significant share in the European pet food market. This segment includes fish, chicken, beef, and pork, which dogs and cats highly prefer. The plant-derived segment is expected to grow significantly in European pet food revenue due to increased pet health awareness among pet owners. The insect-derived segment has also gained traction recently and is estimated to have decent growth over the forecast period. 

Europe Pet Food Market - By Animal:

• Dog
• Cat
• Bird
• Other Animals

The cat segment dominated the European market due to increased cat adoption over dogs in the last decade. According to the European Pet Food Industry Federation, the pet cat population dominated the dog population by over 20 million in Russia, which stood at the top for cat population, followed by Germany and France. The increasing pet humanization is accelerating the pet food market in the European region. With the increase in cats as pets, cat food is becoming more prominent in this region. The current modern lifestyle resembles cats as the most widespread adoption pet. 

Europe Pet Food Market - By Country:

• UK
• France
• Spain
• Germany
• Italy
• Russia
• Sweden
• Denmark
• Switzerland
• Netherlands
• Turkey
• Czech Republic

European region held the second largest share in the pet food market, with a market share of 27% in 2022. The UK dominated the European pet food market due to its high pet adoption rate, which is expected to maintain its domination in the forecast period. According to UK Pet Food, 62% of households will consist of pets in 2022, which is expected to increase in the upcoming years, positively influencing the European pet food market share. Pet owners in Europe are investing more in premium pet food to provide healthy pets with essential nutrients. The presence of the key market players in this region also influences the market growth. 

The pet food market in Germany is expected to expand during the forecast period due to increased pet humanization and the rising popularity of fortified pet foods. According to studies, around 45% of German households have pets, and 20% have multiple pets. Emerging countries such as France, Italy, and Spain are gaining traction due to increased pet adoption, and they are expected to have a decent growth rate in the forecast period. 

KEY MARKET PLAYERS:

The European pet food market is highly concentrated, with ten major players together accounting for more than 50% of the market share and the remaining market share distributed among a large number of small manufacturers. Mars, Inc., Del Monte Foods, Hills Pet Nutrition, INC, Unicharm Corporation, Nippon Formula Feed Manufacturing Company LTD, Pet Center, Incorporated (PCI), Nestle Purina PetCare, Nisshin Saifun Group INC. Natural Dog Food Company, Halo, Purely for Pets, Marukan CO. LTD., Nutrena, and Spectrum Brands, INC. are the major companies in the Europe pet food market.