Dog Food Manufacturers

Top 10 Dog Food Manufacturers by Market Share

The members in the top 10 of dog food manufacturers do not change much over time. In fact, only mergers and acquisitions typically change who the main players are and what their exact position is in the top 10 in the dog food industry.

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Mars Inc. (Mars Petcare)
Their top dog food brands include Pedigree and Cesar. Mars achieves knowledge about dog nutrition through Waltham research centers.
Nestlé SA (Nestlé Purina Petcare)
Their top dog food brands include Purina One, Purina Pro Plan, Beneful and VitaLife.
Procter & Gamble Co. (P&G Petcare)
Their top dog food brands include Eukanuba and Iams.
Colgate-Palmolive (Hill’s Pet Nutrition)
Their top dog food brands include Hill's Science Diet and Hill's Prescription Diet
Del Monte Foods Co.
Their top dog food brands include Nature's Recipe, Meaty Bone and Kibbles 'n Bits
Agrolimen SA (Affinity Petcare SA)
Their top dog food brands include Affinity, Brekkies and Ultima.
Nutro Products Inc.
Their top dog food brands includes Natural Choice Complete and Ultra Dog. Nutro has staked its success and growth on a commitment to the pet speciality channel and usage of all-natural ingredients.
Unicharm Corp. (Unicharm Petcare Corp.)
Nisshin Seifun Group Inc. (Nisshin Petfood Inc.)
Nippon Flour Mills Co. Ltd. (Nippon Petfoods Co. Ltd.)

Just bear in mind that this is a list of most succesful dog food companies in the world in terms of market share, market growth and financial results. It's NOT a list of best dog food quality in descending order but of course such a list would be the single most important one for you and your furry friend.

Dogfood for dinner

Dog Food Manufacturers Mars and Nestlé Rule Half the Dog Food World

The two biggest dog food companies are Mars Inc. and Nestlé SA, together they take up almost half of the total global market for dog food. They rule both in developed markets as well as in emerging markets. Mars and Nestlé are similar in the following:

World-wide presence
Broad brand portfolios
Their focus on economy brands (mid-priced dog food that can be bought at grocery stores) helped to establish a strong consumer base.
Extensive distribution networks
Efficient and strong brand marketing

On May, 1st 2007 Mars announced the acquisition of Nutro Products. However, Nutro will continue to operate as a stand-alone organization and maintain their focus on the pet speciality channel.

The remaining half of the market is for all other dog food manufacturers to divide. Del Monte Foods has a limited global presence but will take a larger bite out of the dog food market through recent acquisitions.

Developed Dog Food Markets

The market for dog food is expected to increase at least until 2010. New products are developed because of new scientific insights, pet pampering and a desire for convenience.

In developed markets the main trends are pet humanization and convenience packaging. This drives dog owners to buy more dog treats and more expensive dog food (including premium dog food, natural dog food, functional dog food and human-style products). So premium and super premium dog food show the biggest growth in developed markets.

Companies that benefit from the premium dog food and super premium dog food trend in the US are amongst others Procter & Gamble Co, Colgate-Palmolive and Nutro.

The last three dog food companies in the top 10 list are Unicharm Corp., Nisshin Seifun Group Inc. and Nippon Flour Mills Co. Ltd. and these are all Japanese dog food manufacturers. Japan is the world’s second largest market for pet products (the US being the biggest one).

Emerging Dog Food Markets

Countries in Eastern Europe and Latin America are in the process of switching from table scraps to commercial dog food. In these regions the mid-priced economy brands show the largest growth as average purchasing power is lower and dog owners in these regions are not ready to call themselves ‘pet parents’ as is the case in the US. Dogs in these countries are typically kept for work or security purposes.

In emerging markets growth can get very fast as dog owners get more spending power and are getting better informed about dog nutrition. Dog food manufacturers that have a distribution network in these parts of the world will benefit from those developments.

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