5 Suprising Truths About The Pet Food Industry They May Not Want You to Know

Honor Tremain
Jan 23
4 min read

The pet food sector is a booming industry, with over 50% of all households having a dog or cat, exceeding 1 billion animals worldwide. According to the Fortune Business Report 2025, global spending on pet food is upwards of $132.4 billion and is estimated to reach $179 billion by 2032. by Honor Tremain

The massive growth of this industry can partly be explained by people’s love for companion animals, particularly with the increase in human anxiety, loneliness, and depression, where pets are seen as potential solutions. Another factor is that younger high-income earners, like Gen Z, are opting to have children later in life, having fewer children, or none at all, and are instead raising “furry family members.” (P Alexander)

This humanization of pets, with more disposable income directed towards them, has led to the demand for higher-quality “human-grade” pet foods, but it has also created a few dilemmas. Many of the new premium high-meat diets are exceeding recommended nutritional requirements for animals, potentially making them sick while also putting an unsustainable burden on the environment.

But first:

A bit about dogs

Dogs appeared on Earth about 20 million years ago, and from the get-go, they were foragers. Many ancient remains indicate their diets were extremely diverse, including a mix of meat, marine life, plants, vegetables, fruits, and ancient grains like millet.

Their friendly nature, joyful energy, loyalty, and instinctive bond with humans have made them wonderful companions and easy best friends to many. And they’re not just adorable, loving, cuddly, and cute, they’re also highly intelligent, useful, and protective, being trustworthy companions, guides, and guards to people in need.

Some facts

The global pet food ingredients market is expected to increase from $32.2-$44.5 billion from 2022 to 2027, with pressure to support what’s on trend, currently, that’s more meat.
The pet food sector is closely linked to the livestock sector, where dogs and cats currently consume 9% of all livestock animals globally. In the U.S., it’s 20%.
Consumption of livestock is currently at unsustainable levels, with roughly 92 billion land animals, 124 billion farmed fish, and 1.1-2.2 trillion wild fish being slaughtered each year globally. (A Mood)
Emissions from the livestock sector account for the same amount of global greenhouse gases as the combined exhaust emissions from all cars, planes, trains, and boats on Earth.
According to WWF, deforestation due to livestock needs is responsible for 10% of all global warming while destroying essential wildlife habitats, where more than 50% of the world’s land-based plants and animals, and 75% of all bird species, need these forests to survive, leading to extinction.
If that’s not concerning enough, with the rising popularity of high-raw meat meals, the environmental impact of some pets’ diets is overtaking that of humans.
In the U.S. alone, dogs and cats are producing roughly 30% as much bio-waste (poop) as people do!

How has this happened?

Clever marketing, poor recommendations, overfeeding, and the concept that higher meat diets are healthier for your animal are the drivers. However, international environmental protection agencies such as the WWF, veterinarians, and health advocates around the world are concerned.

Because the next most baffling thing about all of this, other than the financial and environmental costs, is that these diets may not be good for your furry bestie!

Food allergies, cancers, pancreatitis, kidney disease, anxiety, gut, inflammatory, and immune disorders are all on the rise.

Health concerns

The Journal of Internal Medicine reports that 11 million premature deaths and 255 million disabilities each year are attributable to poor diet, excessive consumption of processed and trans fats, high salt and sugar intake, physical inactivity, and a widespread Omega-3 deficiency in humans.

And it isn’t just people who are paying the price. Our pets are increasingly affected by the same modern pressures. Cancer is now the leading cause of death in dogs and a growing threat to cats, with the American Veterinary Medical Association estimating that approximately one in four dogs will develop cancer during their lifetime.

This study explains:

“The increased risk of cancer in humans and dogs is a consequence of recent extensions of lifespan, body size beyond evolutionarily determined limits, diet, lifestyle, and environmental toxins.”

In essence, modern living is impacting all species alike. Overfeeding, ultra-processed ingredients, artificial additives, preservatives, flavor enhancers, chemical residues, and excessive meat intake can all disrupt the gut microbiome, accelerate toxic load, and impact health. Over time, these imbalances can contribute to kidney strain, allergy and immune dysfunction, chronic inflammation, and increased cancer risk.

All the while, an important fact has been overlooked, protein requirements for dogs are not set. According to leading regulatory bodies such as the Association of American Feed Control Officials (AAFCO), protein needs for dogs vary depending on age, breed, sex, season, activity level, and overall health status. Research indicates that protein levels exceeding 30% offer no additional benefit and that excessive protein can be harmful.