David Sprinkle

After sales of pet treats sored during the pandemic, the market now seems to be leveling. But dog and cat treats remain popular among pet parents.

Over the past decade, the number of US households with a dog older than 7 years of age has increased from 42% to 52%.

Although the number of US households owning dogs or cats is 2% less than in 2019, the super premium category and increases in e-commerce sales are expected to drive the industry in the near future.

Pet owners are spending more time at home with their pets and this has translated into more opportunities for treat-giving, and a boost in sales figures.

Historically speaking, the US pet industry has been overtly canine-centric, and not without commercial justification.

As in the overall pet market, the COVID-19 pandemic has had a huge, beneficial influence on the US market for the ‘niche’ fish, small mammal, herptile, and bird products markets. Actual sales and demand have risen to historically high levels.

The impact of COVID-19 on the U.S. pet industry (products and services) was nothing like what seemed unavoidable during the early months of the pandemic. Instead, 2020 turned out to be a banner year for the pet industry, with overall sales growth of 9.3%, well above the 2014-2019 compound annual growth rate of 5.4%

The COVID-19 outbreak is driving strong growth in the sale of pet supplements in the US.

The superpremium segment is generally reserved for the highest quality products, typically positioned on clear-cut ingredient or targeted health claims. ‘Natural’ and ‘holistic’ pet foods are increasingly taking over this space.

E-commerce was again the fastest growth channel for pet product sales during 2019, growing 26% to reach $12.3 billion (€11.5 billion), with pet food accounting for $8.2 billion (€7.6 billion). However, there are some paradoxes.