Younger consumers especially cite the importance of sustainability in their purchasing choices—and the industry is responding.

By David Sprinkle

 

David Sprinkle is director of pet market research at Packaged Facts, a leading authority on the U.S. pet industry. He is also a frequent presenter at U.S. and international pet and veterinary conferences, as well as the author of Petfood Industry magazine’s monthly Market Report column.

 

As with American shoppers at large, pet product shoppers’ top priorities are product quality, product affordability, shopping convenience and brand name.

But those factors are hardly setting the world on fire. To tap more deeply into their customers’ psyches, forward-looking pet industry participants are strategically targeting emerging consumer mindsets as the next stage in the trajectory of ever-increasing pet humanization and product premiumization.

High on this list is corporate progressiveness on sustainability. (Participation in pet welfare causes and corporate transparency about values, operations and labor practices also play an important role.) Sustainability initiatives are therefore ramping up across the pet industry, with companies marketing their efforts around ethical sourcing, alternative protein, sustainable packaging and recycling. Fueling this trend is a recognition that sustainability consciousness often ranges dramatically higher among younger-generation pet owners, who are very likely if not destined to be more severely affected by climate change.

Fueling this trend is a recognition that sustainability consciousness often ranges dramatically higher among younger-generation pet owners, who are very likely if not destined to be more severely affected by climate change.

For example, as shown by Packaged Facts’ February-March 2023 Survey of Pet Owners, 34% of Millennial/Gen Z pet food shoppers strongly agree that they like the idea of insect protein in pet food and treats, compared with only 7% of their Baby Boomer counterparts (see chart below). More broadly, the American Pet Products Association’s 2022 Generational Report shows that Millennials are more willing than earlier generations to pay more for pet products that are ethically sourced, BPA-free and eco-friendly.

Packaged Facts’ February-March 2023 survey also showed one-fourth (24%) of U.S. pet owners reporting that they buy pet foods with eco-conscious packaging, up from one-fifth (19%) only the year before. While these numbers may reflect a lack of consumer awareness that almost all kibble packaging is eco-unfriendly, consumers are certainly seeking out sustainable packaging.

Unfortunately, it has proven challenging for manufacturers to find sustainably produced packaging materials able to hold graphics and maintain product shelf life. Even biodegradable containers can be problematic because landfills in some parts of the United States rely on the materials maintaining their integrity rather than biodegrading and potentially leaching polymers and other contaminants into groundwater. (In these cases, highly compressible packaging may be environmentally preferable.) As a result, over 99% of the plastic pet food and treat bags purchased each year—300 million pounds’ worth—are disposed of in a landfill rather than recycled, according to the Pet Sustainability Coalition.

Fully aware of the disconnect between supply and demand, the pet food industry is working toward more sustainable packaging and recycling options. For example, direct-to-consumer pet food marketer Open Farm, a leader in the sustainable pet food movement, has partnered with international recycling leader TerraCycle to offer a national pet food bag recycling program, as has Mars for its Karma brand of “plant-first” dog food packaging.

Moreover, Canidae in 2022 rolled out its Kibble Refill Stations at Petco stores across the country. The stations operate similarly to bulk gravity-feed food dispensers and are paired with reusable zipper bags that eliminate the need for single-use packaging. Following a successful pilot at Petco locations in Southern California, Canidae and Petco expect to expand the kibble refill technology to 100 Petco stores.

And sustainability initiatives are hardly limited to pet food. A key sign of the growing interest in more sustainable pet products—and pet parent willingness to pay for them—is the advancement of natural cat litter formulations made from earth-friendly, biodegradable materials such as corn, wheat, soybean, walnut or wood. MRI-Simmons National Consumer Survey data show that usage rates for natural cat litter formulations have steadily risen from 15.5% of category purchasers in fall 2018 to 23.1% as of spring 2023, the highest level ever.

Sustainability Trends in Modern Retailing, a 2022 report by retail consulting firm Anthesis, confirms that sustainability credentials are a growing factor in where consumers choose to shop. Among the survey respondents with a preference for eco-friendly products:

• 80% said they purchase the products because they care about the future of the planet
• 62% believe the products are better for human health
• 56% like to participate in a positive movement
• 39% believe the products to be of a higher quality.

Sustainability is therefore no longer just an opportunity for pet industry participants to “do the right thing.” Instead it has become a necessity to win over, or even to simply retain, pet product shopper loyalty and dollar spending. The eco-writing has long been on the wall, and it’s now moving onto shelves everywhere.

For practical ideas on how to reduce plastic waste in veterinary practice, see “Sustainability Rx: A guide to reducing your practice’s carbon paw print.”

1. United Nations, “In Images: Plastic Is Forever,” accessed August 4, 2023, https://www.un.org/en/exhibits/exhibit/in-images-plastic-forever.
2. Navami Jain and Desiree LaBeaud, “How Should US Health Care Lead Global Change in Plastic Waste Disposal?” AMA Journal of Ethics, October 2022, https://journalofethics.ama-assn.org/article/how-should-us-health-care-lead-global-change-plastic-waste-disposal/2022-10.