Private labels in the ascendant

Private labels now no longer cover just the lowest price level in many categories, but are also represented in higher value categories, according to the 2003 International Yearbook of the Amsterdam-based Private Label Manufacturers Association (PLMA) produced by AC Nielsen. The United Kingdom, Belgium and Germany lead the way in Europe in the private label business: private label volume share in the UK is over 40 per cent, with value share only lagging slightly behind. In Belgium, the volume share is 36.5 per cent and the value share 27.2 per cent, while the volume and value shares enjoyed by private labels in Germany are 33.2 and 25.4 per cent respectively.  How do private labels fare in the pet food segment? Statistics for individual countries show that private labels achieve a high market share above all with regard to wet food for cats and dogs and cat litter. In product segments such as dry dog and cat food, fish food and bird food, they play a comparatively modest role.
According to the Yearbook, the share of the pet food market captured by private labels in Germany is particularly high, with a volume share of 52.8 per cent and a value share of 44.3 per cent. The values for individual product groups are even higher, with a volume share of 62.9 per cent and a value share of 57.6 per cent for wet food for dogs. Private labels are also doing well in the wet cat food category, where the volume and value shares are 57 per cent and 46.5 per cent respectively. By contrast, private labels have a negligible share of the fish and bird food markets in Germany. Private labels account for 48.6 per cent of the Belgian pet food market by volume and 34.5 per cent in value. As in Germany, private labels are particularly in demand in the dog food segment, where the volume share of the market is 51.6 per cent and the value share 35.7 per cent. The cat food and cat litter product groups are slightly below this.
Contribution of the countries - Total Private Label sales 2002
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The market share of private labels in the pet food segment in Spain is above 40 per cent, something that comes as a surprise as, although the market share of private labels generally grew substantially in the country last year, it is still comparatively small. 
In the Netherlands, where private labels “only” account for 24.8 per cent of the pet product market by volume and 20.6 per cent by value, the high volume share of 52.6 per cent for cat litter is striking, and the value share in…