Online demand for pet food in Australia rises by 200%

The local industry believes that this is partly due to the so-called “Puppy Boom,” where many households decided to buy a pet, which resulted in a higher volume of purchases in the online channel.

Lee Amiti, a founder of Australia’s pet food producer Pet Food Australia, believes that the pandemic positively affected their company.

“Due to lockdowns, people are buying online, which lead to a 200% growth since July 2021,” he admitted.

According to Euromonitor International, Australia experienced strong value growth in premium dry and wet dog and cat food in 2021.

Provider of big data IRI unveiled that pet ownership in Australia increased by 4% in 2020.

Positive forecast

Industry analysts remain optimistic about the future prospects of the Australian pet food market.

Consumers want to ensure their pets receive the best clean-label food ethically sourced from natural ingredients.

“The pet humanization trend strengthened even further as more consumers spent time at home with their pets for comfort, wanting to pamper them with quality food and care,” said Ayusha Amatya from Euromonitor International.

Analyst forecast that interest in food sensitivities, gut health and weight management tackling specific health issues like digestion, metabolism and immunity are expected to keep growing.

Treats are expected to grow strongly as well as consumers are using these products to engage and interact with their pets when they spend more time at home.

Amatya also highlighted that the severe disruption for global travel is encouraging more millennials to indulge in their pets, as the pet food industry in Australia remains “fairly recession-resistant.”

The increase in pet population is also driving manufacturers to expand their local production capacities.

One example is Purina, which is currently investing in growing the capacity of the local manufacturing operations in the country.

“With more and more pet owners working from home and new pets getting rewarded during training, we have also seen a rise in treating of pets. In the latest 12 months, Pet Treats had the highest penetration growth and Val Sales growth of the Petcare sub-categories”, said Head of Marketing of Nestle Purina Australia Helen Warnes.