pet food

China’s fast-paced economy and increasing levels of disposable incomes are having a positive impact on the pet industry. New research from global market analyst, Euromonitor International, shows that pet ownership in China substantially increased between 1999 and 2004. Driven by the growing population of pets, demand for pet food products has also been stimulated to a large extent. Although small in scale compared with Western developed countries, the Chinese pet food market offers high growth potential as it becomes increasingly regulated. Owing to the Government’s relaxed control in the breeding of cats and dogs, dog and cat ownership grew rapidly between 1999 and 2004. Euromonitor’s latest research shows that the percentage of the Chinese population owning dogs and cats increased from 5％ and 14％ respectively in 1999 to an estimated 7％ and 15％ in 2004, which indicates the increasing popularity of dogs and cats in China. Hence, Euromonitor International estimates sales of dog and cat food reached nearly RMB1.6 billion in 2004, representing current value growth of 13％ over the previous year. Sales of other pet food such as bird food and fish food were valued at RMB3.9 million in 2004, up by 11％ in current terms from 2003.