In Italia food and care for animals to grow by 2.5% to 5.3 billion in 2025

Every year, when the Assalco-Zoomark Report comes out, the curiosity is always the same: to understand whether there are more animals or more people in Italian homes. It is one of those statistics that are immediately striking and then, on reflection, tell less than they seem. Because the point is not how many animals live in Italian households - and this year the estimate has moreover been revised downwards, to 53.6 million, thanks to a more accurate methodology especially for species that are difficult to census such as fish and birds. The question is what is behind those numbers. What they tell us about how we live, what we buy and how much space animals now have in our daily lives. The report presented in Bologna is now in its 19th edition and introduces an important novelty: for the first time the market is read in an omnichannel way, including large-scale distribution, specialised chains and e-commerce. The result is a EUR 5.3 billion sector between pet food and pet care.

Overall, the cat and dog food sector is worth 4.2 billion and is growing at an average rate of 6.9 per cent from 2022, above the packaged consumer goods. Within these numbers is a trend that has been clear for years: the market revolves mainly around cats. Products for felines are worth 56% of the entire pet food, amounting to EUR 2.353 billion, and are growing by 4.3%. Dogs are growing less (+0.7%), but remain an almost EUR 1.85 billion market. The direction seems clear: less focus on quantity and more on quality. The places where people buy are also changing: supermarkets and hypermarkets are losing share, while specialised pet shops and e-commerce are growing, which is already worth EUR 483 million. Those who buy for their pets are looking for more choice, targeted products and often rely on channels perceived as more competent.

Attention to animal welfare can also be seen in purchasing habits. Over 75 per cent of dog owners and 70 per cent of cat owners use snacks on a regular basis, no longer just as an occasional treat but as part of their daily routine. About half of all households buy functional supplements in tablet or powder form, while dietetic foods are chosen by more than 40% of dog owners and almost four out of ten cat owners. The pet market, after all, is also following a direction already seen in human nutrition: more focus on ingredients, prevention and specific needs.

The tax issue remains open. Today pet food is taxed at 22%, as a non-essential good, while ASSALCO continues to call for a reduction of VAT to 10%. A request that this year gained a consensus that is hard to ignore: more than 80% of pet owners are in favour of the cut, but also almost 65% of the entire sample - so well beyond the audience of those directly affected. Support remains high even when considering dietary pet food alone, where more than 60% of owners and almost 53% of Italians are in favour of the reduction. Giorgio Massoni, president of ASSALCO, is straightforward: 'It is important to recognise the essential value of pet food and veterinary care also on a fiscal level. The topic is not just sentimental. An LAV study estimates that the presence of a pet among the elderly reduces the use of doctor visits by 15 per cent, with a potential saving of about EUR 4 billion for the National Health Service. If one really does the maths, the fiscal game appears less obvious than it seems.

Finally, the report also tries to take a picture of who lives with a pet today. 54.5% of Italian families have at least one pet. The quota rises to 66.7% among families with children and remains high even in those with adult children. It is a figure that belies a widespread narrative - that of animals as surrogates for children - and suggests something simpler and more precise: animals accompany family life, not replace it. Dogs and cats are present in 28.7% and 26.7% of Italian homes respectively. Put another way: that means almost one in three households has a dog, almost one in four has a cat. Numbers that explain well how they have become a stable presence in everyday life.