Enjoyment is still a strong driver of pet food market innovation. Owners want to indulge their animal companions with inspiring and exciting culinary experiences.

Artisanal foods, human-style products, tailor-made recipes… for today’s pet parents, only the best is good enough to awake Medor’s taste buds and make mealtime a shared happy moment.

 

 

Delectable delight: “gourmetization” of casual eating

 

With the rise of pet status and owners’ desire to spoil their companions, pet mealtime is one of the best moments to share together.

 

More and more, pet parents want to fully indulge their animals by selecting highly sophisticated gourmet recipes that break the routine of their normal pet food while maintaining their good health.

 

To this end, manufacturers challenge their imagination by regularly launching innovative super-premium treats and foods.

 

Some companies incorporate select ingredients like prime cuts of meats to enhance classic formulas.

 

Other manufacturers develop new textures, such as creamy, crunchy, or fluffy, to improve mouthfeel and enhance taste.

 

For other players, “gourmetization” goes hand-in-hand with humanization. Clearly mirroring the pet owner diet, these innovations are erasing boundaries between human and pet worlds.

 

Thanks to the rise of pet food gastronomy, it’s no longer surprising to see packaging copy highlighting a delicate chef-inspired recipe.

 

Product shapes mimic a plethora of human foods, ranging from pizzas or burgers to more luxurious bakery goods such as macarons or pupcakes.

 

Another ongoing trend is products representing human consumption habits that aren’t for pets, such as wine, puppucchinos, or ice cream.

 

  • Pure Balance Starters

 

 

Craft creation: authenticity appeal

 

More and more pet owners turn away from mass-market products and long for something special and authentic for their beloved friends.

 

They no longer select food only for its functionalities but also because the brand tells them the story of a product made in a pet lover’s kitchen, using artisanal manufacturing processes and strictly selected ingredients.

 

To seduce pet owners, some companies reinvent their formula by emphasizing quality and taste of premium ingredients or alternative processes. The use of local ingredients or ingredients from well-known areas of production is a quality guarantee regularly used by manufacturers to reassure and convince consumers.

 

To a lesser extent, some players formulate products using human-grade ingredients, not only to mimic human food trends but also to satisfy pet parents who expect the same standards for pet food as their own food.

 

Artisanal positioning is another popular purchase trigger. It symbolizes time and dedication, handcrafted and slowly cooked batches. In the consumer mind, those things suggest both nutrition and taste.

 

All the codes that signify home-style cooking and a traditional look and feel to products are used, resonating even more when inspired by a human food category. The less perfect a product seems in shape or packaging, the more the consumer is seduced.

 

Craft pet food is probably the last step before do-it-yourself alternatives, as illustrated by the numerous recipes for cat and dog food shared on the web, especially for treats.

 

  • Belohnungskekse Rind & Hagebutte

 

 

Ultimate personalization: “made for me” solutions

 

The need for differentiation is a strong social and cultural driver that shapes consumer purchasing habits. Pet parents need to feel that they select unique products for their fur baby that perfectly fit with his specific needs and make him special, as the utmost pampering step.

 

Mix-in and toppers solutions constitute the first customization approach, where creativity is in pet parents’ hands. It gives them the chance to put the final touch on their animal’s meal preparation, adding variety based on their imagination and feeling.

 

Ranges of thematic boxes are a good opportunity for pet owners to treat their companions with regular surprises for even more fun, with possible adjustments according to the preferences of their cats and dogs.

 

Lastly, digitization is opening a new era of tailor-made options. More and more online platforms allow pet owners to select highly personalized diets focusing on their animal’s specific nutritional needs.

Besides the health benefits of a tailor-made formula, online platforms offer the advantage of exclusive shipping conditions adjusted to pet consumption and owner constraints.

 

  • Simply Nourish Accents

 

Take-home points

  • Enjoyment is a strong driver of pet food market innovation.
  • Pet owners expect quality and taste. They look for authentic preparations, based on selected ingredients and made with artisanal processes.
  • Premium indulgence signifies sophistication and gourmet experience shared between pets and their people.
  • Because all pets are unique to their parents, many solutions now provide tailor-made pet food, especially on web.