The Canadian pet food industry is strong and continues to grow. Recognized as an essential industry by the government during the pandemic, the sector has grown significantly since early 2020. In April 2022, its total contribution to GDP was C$5.66 billion (€4.31B) and the industry was responsible for over 45,000 full-time equivalent jobs along the supply chain.
While no data is available on the current pet population, there are believed to be more pets today than in 2020 when, according to the Canadian Animal Health Institute, 58% of Canadian households owned at least one dog (7.7 million) or cat (8.1 million). Canadians love their pets and are willing to pay substantial amounts for their food and care, generally following global trends for premiumization and humanization.
Sales are steadily on the rise
Pet food retail sales in the country grew 5.7% annually from 2016 to 2021 to over C$4.4 billion (€3.4B) and are expected to reach C$5.9 billion (€4.5B) by 2025. Grocery retailers have remained at around 40% of the market share, while pet specialty was approximately 13% in 2020. Both these channels have been declining since 2016. While e-commerce continues to grow, it is not as popular as in other countries.
According to 2022 figures from Statista, Ontario is the province with the highest number of pet stores (776), followed by Quebec (506), British Columbia (347), and Alberta (271).
