In the UK, 48% of pet owners deem health- boosting ingredients to be just as effective for pets as they are for humans. It is no surprise that high- protein claims are very attractive in the pet food market as well (Mintel, 2019).
When looking to stand out on the protein front and capitalise on the current health trend around protein, it is important for brands to ensure that they can determine exactly how strong their knowledge is in this area.
Consumer Trends
According to Mintel, consumers are increasing the amount of research they are doing on pet food and expecting proof of ingredients before purchase. This is ultimately creating a growing trend for pet food manufacturers who can express high protein content in order to draw attention to the exact percentage of meat and fish in their products.
Quality of protein
Pet owners also recognise the need for quality over quantity. With research from Mintel on the UK pet food industry, six in ten adults with either a cat or a dog note that the quality of meat is more important than the overall meat content. At GA we ensure your recipes are of the highest quality. Using Freshtrusion technology, this cooks the meat at a gentle 90 C temperature keeping in the freshness and protecting the proteins. Traditional category 3 meats & oils are rendered at circa 300 C which reduces the nutritional goodness and damages proteins, therefore decreasing the bio-availability to the pet.
Transparency is needed
Half of UK cat and dog owners find the ingredients list on pet food difficult to understand. This has meant brands must be much clearer regarding this in order to build brand trust. Being transparent about the ingredients and telling consumers the exact proportion of meat and fish content in products is a great way to show high quality.
All of your Grain Free recipes include a selection of the finest prepared nutritious and highly digestible animal protein sources. They are also natural, complete and balanced with no added colours and preservatives.
Your new Product Guides define how much total protein & freshly prepared protein is in your recipes.
Please speak to your account manager who will email your Product Guides to you or send via the post.
