Premiumisation, small company growth and insect-based feeding are going to be key trends in the Polish pet food market going forward, according to a number of new reports.
The Polish pet food market outperformed the average for Eastern Europe last year, showing a 6% increase in volume and a 4% increase in value in a year-to-year comparison, says Euromonitor International.
The research company estimated that just a third of all dogs and just over 40% of cats in Poland are fed with ready-made pet food. But both figures are on the rise, with a rising number of customers switching to purchasing better and more expensive pet food.
Multinational companies such as Mars and Nestle have traditionally been strong in Poland, but their market share is falling, according to some analysts.
“Currently the international companies’ share is declining to the benefit of smaller companies, usually local, selling mainly through traditional channels, but also developing e-commerce. They offer products under their own brands, successfully competing with the well-known global companies,” said Michal Kierul, an analyst at Polish consulting agency Navigator Capital.
The country’s largest insect protein producer HiProMine has raised funds to build a large-scale facility, capable of producing more than 300 kg of insects per square metre per month, mainly hermetia illucens soldier flies with a high nutritional profile, according to local reports.
“Thanks to the construction of a production plant based on our own proven and patented technology, we plan to enter the huge market of feed materials and become one of the leaders of the dynamically growing segment of insect protein in Europe,” president and co-founder Damian Józefiak said in a statement.
