PET FOOD sales have continued to grow over the past year and
are now worth more than £1.9bn, according to latest analysis
and figures published recently by the Pet Food Manufacturer’s
Association.
Key growth areas are dry cat food (up 13 per cent), single-serve
wet cat food (up 19.7 per cent), dry dog food (up 6.7 per cent)
and dog snacks and treats (up 7.3 per cent).
Whiskas and Pedigree are the number one brands by value in the
cat and dog food sector, according to Masterfoods’ annual
Petcare Market Review, published this week. Number two spot
in the total cat food market is taken by Felix, with Winalot
in second place for dogs.
Petfood market
Breakdown of the 2002 UK Market for Prepared Pet Food by Type
Volume Value
'000 tonnes £million
DOG FOOD
Moist 350 311
Complete Dry 307 317
Mixers 63 37
Treats 48 131
CAT FOOD
Moist 399 527
Dry 78 157
Total 1273.6 1460
THE PETS THEMSELVES
Pet keeping trends remain a point of interest and are also
covered by the PFMA’s report.
Latest figures on the pet population show cats at 7.5 million,
ahead of dogs at just over six million and rabbits at 1.1
million. Top pet is still the goldfish, however, at 14.7 million,
with tropical fish at 9.3 million.
Pet
Ownership in 2002
• Of the 24.6 million UK households, just under around
50% own a pet. In 2002 the number of households owning pets
was: Dogs: 4.8million. Cats: 4.5million.
• The 2002 dog population is broken down into: Toy 6.5%,
Small 22.9%, Medium 26%, Large 40%, Giant 2.9%
It has been estimated that approximately 59% of dogs are Pedigree.
The most popular breeds are
1. Labrador Retriever
2. Yorkshire Terrier
3. Border Collie
5. (joint) Jack Russell and German Shepherd
The
number of actual pets in 2002 still shows cats in pole position
with 7.5 million well ahead of dogs, on 6.1 million. Accurate
figures for other pets in 2002 are currently awaiting update
by the PFMA from a new survey, but it is believed that figures
will be much in line with the 2001 figures indicated in the
chart below.
Pet
(millions)
Dog 6.1
Cat 7.5
Budgerigar 0.75 (2001)
Rabbit 1.1 (2001)
Fish 24.7 (2001)
Gold 14.7 (2001)
Tropical 9.3 (2001)
Marine 0.7 (2001)
Guinea pig 0.73 (2001)
Hamster 0.86 (2001)
Canaries 0.26 (2001)
Other birds 1.06 (2001)
There is a growing trend among pet owners towards owning unusual
or exotic animals.
Snakes, reptiles and tropical fish are all growing in popularity,
however ownership of exotic pets demands time and commitment
from the owner. Prospective owners should be aware that such
animals often require specialist attention and should seek
appropriate veterinary advice before acquiring them.
Just under half the households in the UK own a pet, ranging
from dogs, cats and rabbits to the more exotic snakes and
spiders. Dogs and cats have traditionally been the most popular
British pets. Their population has remained fairly stable
over the past six years and in 2002 amounted to13 million.
However, over the past 10 years changes in lifestyle and how
households are structured has affected the relative populations
of dogs and cats with the cat population gradually increasing
to out-number dogs.
Dog ownership has shown a gradual decrease over recent years,
with more people living alone, and with more couples both
going out to work. Urban living and modern working lifestyles
favour the free living, independent cat over the more dependent
dog. Cat ownership is greater in the more urban South of England
in owner occupied dwellings.
*The results of the US Pet Food Institute survey released
in February 2002, show that in 2002, the US pet cat and dog
populations continued to grow. The number of pet cats is over
76 million, while the number of dogs grew from 59 million
to 60.7 million.
