07 November 2000

World Pet Market Survey

Following their recent survey, industries monitor - Euromonitor plc has reported a 15% growth in the world pet market for the period 1994 to 1998. The report shows Western Europe with 35.8% of the global pet market compared with 39.7% for North America and 14.1% for Asia Pacific in 1998, (Japan accounting for 94.0% of this region's total). According to the report, the importance of North America stemmed from its high pet population and strong penetration of pet food products. Increased spending on pets also reflected in solid growth for the region between 1994 and 1998, with the trend towards premium price products lengthening the disparity between North America and Europe. Prices of pet food tended to be higher in Western Europe than in North America, which resulted in a similar proportion of sales for the region, despite a considerably lower pet population. US $millions 1994 1995 1996 1997 1998 North America 12,497.3 13,372.7 13,682.1 14,607.6 15,327.7 Western Europe 12,292.8 13,982.8 14,234.7 13,640.7 13,830.2 Asia-Pacific 5,602.9 6,458.3 6,122.6 5,806.0 5,427.3 Latin America 1,499.5 1,583.5 1,714.7 1,899.9 2,100.9 Australasia 819.2 887.9 946.0 933.9 790.0 Eastern Europe 402.0 508.8 613.2 700.0 665.1 Africa & Middle East 450.9 481.8 459.2 471.9 445.8 TOTAL 33,564.4 37,275.8 37,772.3 38,060.1 38,587.0 Source: Euromonitor Note: Figures may not sum due to rounding The Euromonitor web-site provides some sample information from the report on 'World Sales of Dog Food by Outlet'.. Supermarkets and hypermarkets took the lion's share of distribution of dog food in 1998, but came under pressure from the growing dominance of pet superstores throughout the review period. In addition to pet superstores, the heightened popularity of premium and super-premium brands, particularly in the dominant US market, fuelled growth in distribution for pet shops and veterinary outlets selling pet food over the 1994-1998 period. The exclusive distribution agreements with premium brand manufacturers, such as Iams with its Iams and Eukanuba brands, and Colgate-Palmolive with its Hill's range, sustained gains in dog food distribution, as consumers increasingly opted to trade up to complete nutritionally-balanced and health focused dog food products. The report is far reaching and includes chapters on individual sector trends aswell as forecasts through 2003. All Source Information: Euromonitor