Good prospects for the speciality trade

In many countries, above all countries with a predominantly rural structure, the dog is still the number one pet. This has a positive effect on sales of food and accessories, although the majority of these are sold via the food retailing sector. The growing awareness that pets are living beings that don't just deserve scraps but need to be fed properly, according to their nutritional requirements, has contributed to the strong growth of the speciality trade over the years. The upturn in the speciality trade is closely linked to the spread of premium food to virtually all European countries. "Not every food is suitable for every dog" is the simple yet clear message coming from the industry; the diet of our four-legged friends depends on their age, size and physical attributes.The speciality trade achieves between 60 and 70 per cent of its sales with dog food.Research into pet food has now gone a stage further, however. Royal Canin has launched a concept onto the market that is oriented to the requirements of each breed of dog. The company is thus presenting the pet product trade with a new type of dog food boasting the advantage that it is so complex and advice-intensive it cannot be copied by the supermarket chains. Iams Pet Food has gone down a different route. In autumn 2002 the Proctor & Gamble subsidiary extended its senior and adult dog food product range to include a "Dental Care System" that is said to reduce tartar formation by up to 55 per cent. The company thus offers its customers an additional benefit no other pet food provides. The so-called "Health Extras" introduced in autumn 2004, which satisfy the primary bodily functions of the dog, represent another stage. And Nutro, Hill's Pet Nutrition and the other leading pet food manufacturers are working ceaselessly on new creations and extras to make their products even more attractive. These are helping to raise the profile of the premium segment still further.The common aim is to promote quality-awareness among pet owners, although the price sensitivity of many consumers also has to be given adequate consideration. One positive factor is that a lot of consumers have overcome the caution that for a long time characterised their attitude to dry food. And the view that canned food is cheaper than dry food is also losing ground. The principal beneficiary of this trend is the speciality trade, which in many European states achieves between 60 and 70 per cent of its dog food sales with dry food…