Pet industry

Use our industry guide to find key background information, market research, import and export guidelines, statistics, legislation, trade bodies and trade publications.

The Business & Industry Guides series is produced by the Library & Information Service for ICAEW members and ACA students.

We can compile tailored key players reports, mailing lists, market reports, benchmarking reports and industry news. Our enquiry team can also research other industry-specific information, such as taxation, for you. Call us on +44 (0)20 7920 8620 or email library@icaew.com.

Trends and forecasts

Online articles

The library provides full access to articles from leading business, finance and management journals.

View the latest updates on trends and forecasts in the pet industry

Access to articles is provided subject to suppliers’ terms of use.

Industry snapshots

Croner-i Business Focus is a resource that provides Industry Snaphots for a range of sectors. These contain an overview of developments, trends and statistics for the industry together with an outlook for the future. Sectors covered include Pet and Pet Care.

To find out more about Business Focus, please contact our enquiry team on +44 (0)20 7920 8620 or at library@icaew.com.

Market research

Market research reports focusing on this business sector are available from a number of market research specialists. In most cases these reports are available to fee-paying subscribers or on a pay-as-you-go basis.

Industry profiles and SWOT analyses

Online industry profiles and reports available exclusively for members and ACA students through the Library & Information Service give an overview of market size, competitive landscape and provide a forecast of market performance.

SWOT analyses examining the strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats for major companies operating in this sector are available.

View the latest SWOT analyses of companies in the pet industry

If you experience any problems accessing these resources, please see our online resources troubleshooting FAQ.

Other market research specialists

Some free information is available from the following market research specialists, ranging from industry news to executive summaries of the reports.

Euromonitor
A full listing of reference products and research reports for the pet care industry from Euromonitor, with a range of global, country and company level reports. Each report provides a contents listing and a useful executive summary reporting on the key trends in each country report.

IBISWorld
Business and industry research specialists offering reports on a wide range of sectors, including animal feed production; garden supply and pet food stores and veterinary services. Report snapshots, table of contents and a sample report are available. The company also produces global industry research reports.

Mintel
A full listing of reports from market intelligence provider Mintel on the pet market. Report summaries, table of contents and a sample report are available.

Industry news

Need to find the latest news on this industry sector? We can carry out industry news searches using a range of trade titles and general business sources through our databases. To discuss your requirements, please contact the enquiry team on +44 (0)20 7920 8620 or at library@icaew.com.

Statistics on the UK

The Pet Food Manufacturers' Association (PFMA)

The PFMA provides a breakdown of industry statistics, covering market history and trends, pet population and pet purchasing trends.

Office for National Statistics

The Annual Business Survey (ABS) from the Office for National Statistics collects financial information covering UK production, construction, distribution and service industries. Statistics available include:

number of enterprises;
total turnover;
approximate gross value added at basic prices;
total purchases of goods, materials and services;
total employment costs;
total net capital expenditure;
total net capital expenditure – acquisitions;
total net capital expenditure – disposals;
total stocks and work in progress – value at end of year;
total stocks and work in progress – value at beginning of year;
total stocks and work in progress – increase during year.

The dataset Non-financial business economy, UK: Sections A to S includes statistics for:

Manufacture of prepared pet foods (10.92)
See Section C: Manufacturing
Retail sale of flowers, plants, seeds, fertilisers, pet animals and pet food in specialised stores (47.76)
See Division 47: Retail trade, except of motor vehicles and motorcycle
Veterinary activities (75.0)
See Section M: Professional, scientific and technical activities

Statistics on Europe

Eurostat

Eurostat, the EU statistics hub, collates detailed Structural Business Statistics giving the latest figures for industry, construction, trade and services by sector and country. The indicators available include:

number of enterprises
turnover or gross premiums written
production value
value added at factor cost
gross operating surplus
wages and salaries
social security costs
gross investment in tangible goods
gross investment in land
gross investment in existing buildings and structures
gross investment in construction and alteration of buildings
gross investment in machinery and equipment
number of employees
number of persons employed per enterprise.

Statistics within the database are available for:

Manufacture of prepared pet foods (C1092)
See database section ‘SBS – industry and construction’
Retail sale of flowers, plants, seeds, fertilisers, pet animals and pet food in specialised stores (G4776)
See database section ‘SBS – trade’
Veterinary activities (M750)
See database section ‘SBS – services’

FEDIAF

FEDIAF, the European Pet Food Industry Federation, provides facts and figures with statistics on:

pet ownership
number of pet food producing companies
employment
annual sales
annual value of pet related products and services
annual growth rate of the pet food industry
pet population.

Statistics on the Americas

Pet Food Institute (US)

The American Pet Products Association publishes industry statistics which includes data on market size and pet ownership.

Global statistics

INDSTAT

The UN Industrial Development Organization (UNIDO) collects and compiles industrial statistics known as INDSTAT, which give information on:

number of employees
number of establishments
output
value added
total wages and salaries.

Statistics by country are available for:

Prepared animal feeds (1533)

Employment

UK

Earnings (ASHE) includes average employment costs within this sector which can be found in Table 14. Average employment costs are provided for full-time employees, part-time employees and all employees.

The data includes average employment costs for:

animal care occupations; and
veterinary nurses and assistants.

The annual Business Register and Employment Survey (BRES), published by the Office for National Statistics, includes total employee and employment estimates for different industries for Great Britain and the UK. Figures are broken down to show full-time/part-time and public/private splits. The dataset Industry – Business Register and Employment Survey (BRES): Table 2 includes statistics for:

Manufacture of prepared pet foods (10920)
Retail sale of flowers, plants, seeds, fertilisers, pet animals and pet food in specialised stores (47760)
Veterinary activities (75)

Other regions

Please see individual country profile pages for links to sources of national statistics.

Import and export

Trade Tariff

The Trade Tariff is a useful Gov.uk database listing tax, duties and licenses for the import and export of goods between the UK and other countries. The database is searchable by product or commodity code and results can be filtered by date and country. Information also includes links to relevant conditions and regulations.

See import and export information for:

UK business guides

Croner-i Business Focus

Business Focus is a resource that provides practical information on many small business trades and sectors. Its Business Opportunity Profiles offer detailed insights into market conditions, legal issues and the trading environment for a range of businesses. These include:

Aquatics retailer
Boarding kennels
Cattery
Dog walker
Pet dog trainer
Pet grooming service
Pet shop
Pet sitter/Home boarding service

Mini Business Opportunity Profiles are also available and provide a general introduction to more niche business areas, including:

Dog day care centre
Pet clothing designer
Pet funeral service
Pet hotel
Pet portait artist
Pet taxi service

To find out more about Business Focus, please contact our enquiry team on +44 (0)20 7920 8620 or at library@icaew.com.

Atom Content Marketing guides

The Start Up Donut from Atom Content Marketing provides practical information on starting up and running a number of small business types. Guides cover a range of areas including market research, current trends, regulations, products and services, promotion and pricing. They include:

Business Economic Notes

HMRC published a series of Business Economic Notes (BENs) offering guidance to HMRC officers to support compliance activity in the department. The notes provide trade-based information with some explanation of key features and trading practices.

The series includes BEN on pet industry, originally issued in 1990 and veterinary surgeons, originally issued in 1990.

HMRC replaced the Business Economic Notes with Tactical and Information Packages (TIPs) in 2007 but these were subsequently removed from the HMRC website following a policy change. Although information in the BENs is no longer up to date, they can offer some useful pointers.

UK key players, ratios and trends

We can produce reports on this sector using selected information from the FAME company database. Reports are available for:

Manufacture of prepared pet foods
UK SIC (2007) Code 10.92
Veterinary activities
UK SIC (2007) Code 75.00

Summaries of the three types of report we can produce are given below. You can find further information, a sample report, pricing details and an online order form on our industry sector reports page.

We also operate a bespoke reports service with results tailored to your specifications. Please contact our enquiry team on +44 (0)20 7920 8620 or at library@icaew.com to discuss your requirements.

Key players report

Our key players report looks at the top companies (by turnover) in any one of the segments within this sector. Reports usually include the top 100 companies but in more specialised sectors with fewer than 100 companies we show all companies with disclosed figures. The reports provide data on 11 comparative fields for the last available year, including:

turnover;
profit margins;
returns on shareholder funds;
solvency ratios
number of employees.

Our reports enable easy comparison of the top companies in this sector against each other and against the sector median, average and standard deviation in each of the 11 fields.

Mailing list

A separate mailing list report is also available with address and contact details for the top companies in any of the segments within this sector.

Market reports

Our market reports look at the aggregated data for the top companies (by turnover) for any of the segments within this sector across all the fields usually found in a company report. The reports include data for the last 10 years* and enables easy comparison of trends for the whole sector. Reports usually include the top 100 companies but in more specialised sectors with fewer than 100 companies we show all companies with disclosed figures.

*Please note the number of companies for which data is aggregated will vary for any given year.

The market reports include sections on:

key financials and employees;
profit and loss account;
balance sheet;
cash flow statement;
financial ratios;
financial trends and changes;
profitability trends and changes.

UK benchmarking

We offer benchmarking reports that can be used to inform your own business strategy or help you identify value-added services to offer to your clients.

Contact the enquiry team directly on +44 (0)20 7920 8620 or at library@icaew.com for a report tailored to your own specific requirements.

Trade bodies

The websites of trade bodies in this sector are a useful source of industry overviews, contacts and statistics.

UK

Europe

FEDIAF

Americas

Asia

Japan Pet Products Manufacturers Association

Oceania

Pet Industry Association of Australia

Global

Trade journals and publications

Trade journals, B2B magazines and specialist consumer magazines are another useful source of news and statistics.

Further resources

Pet products and services industry guide: British Library
British Library industry guides provide listings of resources for industry-specific information, including print directories and materials held by the British Library.

Contact the British Library Business and IP Centre for more information.