New Delhi: Growth in pet adoption post-pandemic is propelling the Indian pet care industry to take the Indian pet care industry to Rs 10,000 crore by 2025, prompting FMCG majors like Nestle India and Emami to enter the segment. has prompted.
The pet food market is currently worth around Rs 4,000 crore and is expected to grow significantly in the next five years. Mars Petcare and Himalaya Wellness Company, among others, are the two major companies operating in this segment.
Mars Petcare is a division of global confectionery major Mars Inc.
Last week, Nestle India entered the segment by acquiring the pet food business from its associated subsidiary Purina Petcare India for Rs 123.5 crore, giving the FMCG major direct access to this fast-growing business in the country.
Earlier this month, Emami, another FMCG company, announced an investment in pet care startup Canis Lupus Services India, which offers Ayurvedic treatments for pets under the brand “Fur Ball Story”.
According to Salil Murthy, Managing Director, Mars Petcare India, India is “one of the fastest growing pet care markets” in the world. The growth is due to factors, such as rising incomes, nuclear families, and changing attitudes towards pets and pet owners.
“During the lockdown, many people filled their void by adopting a pet. This trend during the pandemic saw a surge in demand not only from metros but also from tier II and III cities,” Murthy said.
Now, pet parents are aware of the difference between a pet’s nutritional needs and that human food does not meet the pet’s needs, and therefore the need for a nutritionally balanced manufactured food for their pet. , They said.
“The home-made pet food market is estimated to be around Rs 4,000 crore by 2021 and is expected to grow substantially over the next five years,” he added.
According to a media report, the total dog food market in India is projected to grow at a current CAGR of 15 percent over the next 5 years.
“The market for pet food in India has been at the rising end of the ladder for some time now. The Indian pet care industry is estimated at USD 434 million (retail selling price) in 2021 and is expected to reach USD 1,356 million (Rs.) 10,770 crore) by 2025. The industry has grown by over 15 per cent year-on-year in the last decade,” Murthy said.
New age retail channels such as e-commerce, omni channel initiatives and hyperlocals such as Swiggy and Dunzo have expanded the organizational reach significantly.
“Quick commerce platforms help pet parents get products in the same day or within a few hours. This has led to a sharp growth in these platforms, and it continues to grow stronger,” Murthy said.
Avnish Roy, executive director, Edelweiss Financial Services, said pet food is now a huge market growing at 20 per cent.
Pets are becoming more prevalent due to Kovid.
As FMCG companies “Emami has forayed into the natural, Ayurvedic side of pet food in which Himalaya is a major player,” he said.
Nestle India Chairman and Managing Director Suresh Narayanan said earlier this week that the future of its pet care business is exciting and will be a growth driver for the company.
During the company’s earnings call, Narayanan said pet care is now the most growing category. Today, the country has an estimated 30 million pets and is growing at a rate of 11 percent per year.
According to Narayanan, “expansion of portfolio into fast-growing sectors like wet cat food” and expansion into tier 1 towns and e-commerce is playing a big role. “There is now scope to unleash the full potential of the business”, he said.
Murthy said that India has historically had a large number of dogs, but the number of domesticated cats is small, but growing rapidly.
“In 2022, cat food is set to register higher growth than dog food globally, with more and more people adopting cats because they are easier to care for,” he said, citing Euromonitor data. .
Mars Petcare, which owns popular brands – Pedigree, Whiskas, IAMS and Temptations – last year announced an investment of Rs 500 crore to expand its Hyderabad petfood factory to meet growing domestic demand and exports in Asian markets Was.
Harsh V Agarwal, Vice Chairman and Managing Director, Emami said on July 21 that the pet care segment in India is growing rapidly.
Now, with increasing disposable income, more people are getting house pets, especially dogs.
Last year, Cosmo Films, a leading solutions provider in the packaging, lamination, labeling and synthetic paper segments, entered the pet care business with the ZIGLY brand.