Report states pet industry to see growth in coming year

In a new report by Packaged Facts, it appears as if the pet industry – especially the pet foods sector – has seen growth this past year and will, likely, see much more.

According to the report, natural, organic and eco-friendly pet food labels continue to advance in the market. Furthermore, most consumers are migrating toward high-priced, pet-specialty retailers rather than supermarkets or discount stores. This means that small or local pet stores that offer these quality pet food labels may benefit from designing custom labels to place on the products, remarking on its organic or all-natural qualities and taking advantage of this increasing demand in pet care.

Also, according to the Human-Animal Bond Research Initiative (HABRI) the pet industry is set to expand in the coming year as more cultural factors – including a plethora of Super Bowl commercials – continue to include pets. According to the report, Packaged Facts sees “pet parenting and the ensconcement of pets as members of the family not just as a friend, but as a long-term societal shift.”

While the pet food sector continues to expand within the growing pet industry, many consumer advocates have started to voice their concern over certain pet food labels. If retailers plan on placing custom labels on their pet store’s food products, they may want to refrain from using the popular term “human-grade.” The reason being, according to The Huffington Post, is that it is impossible for any manufactured pet food to be considered “human grade.”

This is because the United States Department of Agriculture oversees pet food labels – not the Food and Drug Administration – and they do not inspect the manufacturing plants. This means the processing and packaging procedures that are used by the companies may not be safe for human consumption at all, making “human-grade” pet food labels a red-flag for most informed consumers.