BUSINESS - Increase of Over 350% in Pet Food Spending in 30 Years

A recent blog by Debbie Phillips-Donaldson, Editor-in-Chief of Petfood Industry, analyzes an increase in pet food spending of US$18.91 billion in the 30 years from 1984 to 2014.

The historical data is from the US Bureau of Labor Statistics (USBLS) and compiled and analyzed by John Gibbons of PetBusinessProfessor.com.

Though not at all an apples-to-apples comparison, Phillips-Donaldson wrote, it’s worth noting that from 1992 to mid-June 2015, overall US grocery store sales grew 85%; in that same period, pet food spending rose 180%.

The humanization of pets and premiumization of products for them, has definitely been a factor in the spending increase.

In 1984, pet care spending represented 0.48% of all US consumer expenditures. By 2014, that had nearly doubled to 0.95%.

Read the full story.