Local heroes challenge the global players

Similar to other countries in the Baltic region, Estonia’s economic situation and pet food market has been negatively affected by the Russian-Ukrainian war and its negative consequences, such as high inflation and the associated decline in sales. While in recent months the situation has generally stabilised, the market is still feeling the pressure of various economic and geopolitical factors. 

While the Estonian pet food market (like those in Latvia and Lithuania) has been traditionally dominated by the products of global majors, such as Mars and Nestle, there are a number of local manufacturers, who try to compete with global producers by launching original products that use local ingredients, including those specific to the area. One example is the Estonian pet food manufacturer Islands of Pets, which in recent years has significantly expanded its range, focusing in particular on products with higher nutritional properties. According to the company, in recent years it has increased production of pet food with some functional ingredients, such as fish meal with peas, which contains 85 per cent Baltic Sea herring caught near the Estonian island Saaremaa. This gives the product useful properties such as omega-3 fatty acid sand animal protein. For most of the local producers, it is only possible to compete with the majors by launching original products, although their supply to the domestic market is currently relatively small in volume terms. Still, this situation might change, as in recent years many local producers have announced plans to expand their production amid the ever-growing demand from the local population for healthy, high-quality pet food. The leading local producers currently include Agroparts, Rockwere and some others.  

At the same time, the major players are also ready for further expansion, despite the challenges that exist.  As Daria Kulinska, an official spokeswoman for Royal Canin Baltics, said in an exclusive interview, over the last year the company has been operating in a turbulent environment in Estonia with the high inflation and pressure on purchasing power. “Regardless of these challenges, we continue to build our ‘expert in health’ position,” says Kulinska. Among the recently introduced innovations is the Size Health Nutrition range – tailored nutrition for dogs of all sizes, available also in Estonia. The company spokeswoman explains that the new SHN range comes with new formulas, recipes…