67% of U.S. households own a pet, based on a survey conducted in 2019 and 2020. Between this high number of family animals and an increasing priority on feeding those pets quality foods, the U.S. pet food and supply industry is stronger than ever.
The U.S. leads the industry worldwide, as the top eight pet food companies in the world are based here.
According to the American Pet Products Association (APPA), sales of pet foods and treats alone increased by 6.5% from 2018 to 2019, reaching a grand total of $36.9 billion total. The APPA anticipates that this number will only continue to grow in the future.
So which companies are providing all this food? We’ve gathered a list of the top 15 pet food companies in the U.S. based on their total revenue in 2019.
15 Largest Pet Food Companies
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Mars Petcare, Inc.
Franklin, Tennessee
$18.085 billionMars Petcare, Inc. is the largest pet food company in the world, based on their revenue from 2019, and, as a result, serves customers all over the world.
One of the reasons the company has reached this status is through its purchase of 90% of Proctor Gamble’s pet care division in 2014-2015 for $2.9 billion, which included both its products and manufacturing facilities.
Not only does Mars’s 41 brands include popular names such as Pedigree, Iams, Whiskas, Royal Canin, and Cesar, but they also have several pet health chains, including Banfield Pet Hospitals and BluePearl.
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St. Louis, Missouri
$13.955 billionNestlé Purina PetCare is the second-largest pet food company in the world. Purina, originally Ralston Purina, has been operating for 90 years and is now a household name in pet food.
In 2001, Nestlé acquired the company and combined it with its other brands Friskies, Fancy Feast, Mighty Dog, and Alpo, creating Nestle Purina PetCare Company.
Other notable brands within this company include Dog Chow, Felix, Kit Kaboodle, Purina, Purina ONE, TidyCats, and DentaLife.
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Orrville, Ohio
$2.822 billionAnother top global pet food company, J.M. Smucker is based in the U.S. and mainly sells its pet products there, but also distributes to areas in the Middle East.
Over the past few years, J.M. Smucker has grown to its prominent place in the pet food industry by acquiring companies such as Big Heart Pet Brands and Ainsworth Pet Nutrition, which produced Rachel Ray’s Nutrish brand.
Other well-known brands they now have include Meow Mix, Kibbles ‘n Bits, Milk-Bone, 9Lives, Natural Balance, Pup-Peroni, Gravy Train, Snausages, Milo’s Kitchen, and Dad’s.
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Topeka, Kansas
$2.388 billionHill’s Pet Nutrition, owned by Colgate-Palmolive, focuses on working with veterinarians to provide pet food that scientifically enhances pets’ health. As a result, many veterinarians recommend and sell Hill’s pet food.
The company’s main product lines are Hill’s Prescription Diet and Hill’s Science Diet. The Prescription Diet offers support with specific health problems such as weight, digestive, or joint issues, while the Science Diet is formulated to help support healthy pets in a more general sense based on their age, size, and digestive needs.
Hill’s Pet Nutrition serves customers all over the world and even has some manufacturing facilities in Europe.
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Meta, Missouri
$1.5 billionA family-owned company, Diamond Pet Foods carries a wide variety of food formulas within their standard Diamond brand. They also have Diamond CARE, a line for pets with special needs and sensitivities, and their Diamond Naturals line, which has superfoods and probiotics in it.
Their other brands include Taste of the Wild, Professional, Nutra-Nuggets, and NutraGold.
Diamond Pet Foods is based in Missouri and mainly sells to the US. They also manufacture their products in South Carolina, California, and Arkansas and sell them in Europe, the Middle East, and Latin America.
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General Mills/Blue Buffalo
Wilton, Connecticut
$1.43 billionBlue Buffalo is known for its natural, premium pet food. The food is known for being meat-based, and they also have grain-free and prescription food lines, all of which are customized to your pet’s stage in life, as well as a variety of treats.
Acquired by General Mills in 2018, the company is in the top six pet food companies in the world, an impressive feat for an organization that focuses on high-end offerings.
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Spectrum Brands/United Pet Group
Earth City, Missouri
$870.2 millionSpectrum Brands has acquired a variety of organizations, and their pet food and care brands span beyond the typical offerings for dogs and cats to include birds, rodents, rabbits, and fish. Some of their most notable pet food brands include Dingo, Wild Harvest, Ecotrition, SmartBones, DreamBone, Healthy Hide, and Birdola.
The company also owns European brands Iams and Eukanuba, as well as several other pet and pet care brands such as Furminator, ProSense, Nature’s Miracle, Tetra, and GloFish.
In addition to selling their products in North America and Europe, they also supply Australia and Latin America.
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Siloam Springs, Arkansas
$700 millionA family-owned private-label and contract manufacturing company, Simmons Pet Food was founded in 1949 and is still run from the state where it began: Arkansas.
The company’s primary focus is on wet pet food, although it produces dry food and treats as well, and it can provide said food in a wide variety of packaging. Even after all these years, the company is still growing, as in 2019, it opened a new $60 million packaging facility in Kansas.
Simmons Pet Food supplies companies both in the United States and in Canada.
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WellPet
Tewksbury, Massachusetts
$700 millionThe maker of brands such as Wellness, Holistic Select, Old Mother Hubbard, Eagle Pack, Sojos, and Whimzees Dental Chews, WellPet has been making pet food since 1926.
The company recently acquired Whimzees, which is based in the Netherlands, and Sojos, based in Indiana. It mainly serves customers in North America, though.
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Amarillo, Texas
$485 millionA Texas-based company, Merrick Pet Care reflects its roots with its new Slow-Cooked BBQ and Full Source product lines. In addition to its Merrick-branded products, its brands include Castor Pollux, Whole Earth Farms, and Zuke’s. Merrick Pet Care offers raw pet food as well as regular wet and dry food.
Nestlé technically owns Merrick Pet Care, but it operates as an independent company, servicing customers in North America, Asia, Australia, and Latin America.
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Walnut Creek, California
$452.1 millionOne of the country’s largest pet product distributors, Central Garden Pet Company also provides products for animals besides dogs and cats. Its customers include both small businesses and large chains such as Wal-Mart, PetSmart, and PETCO.
Some of its most notable pet food and treat brands include Cadet, Nylabone, Pinnacle Grain Free, Kaytee, and Zilla.
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Archer Daniels Midland Company
Quincy, Illinois
$380 millionWhile ADM Animal Nutrition’s main focus is providing premixed and custom blended animal feed to its clients, which are usually other pet and animal food manufacturing companies, it also sells its own line of pet food called Proud Paws.
ADM Animal Nutrition is actively expanding, as in 2019, ADM purchased Neovia Logistics Services and, just two years earlier, acquired Crosswind Industries, a pet treat company.
The company serves customers in North America, Latin America, and Western Europe.
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Ogden, Utah
$380 millionA family-owned company that started in 1972, American Pet Nutrition focuses on selling grain-free pet food and high-quality treats. Their brands include Vita Bone, Supreme Source, and Beggar Dog.
The company also contracts its manufacturing services to other companies, whether that’s formulation, sourcing, packaging, or logistics. They produce all of their products at their facilities in Utah and Pennsylvania, and they serve customers in North America, Latin America, and Asia.
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Red Bay, Alabama
$350 millionA four-generation, family-owned business, Sunshine Mills operates out of Red Bay, Alabama, where they serve pet owners throughout the U.S. and over 30 other countries in North America, Asia, and Latin America.
Their brands include Pup Corn, Dr. Dental Fresh Chews, Meaty Treats, Triumph Free Spirit, and Evolve. The Evolve line of pet food includes flavors based on human recipes such as Salmon and Sweet Potato to service pet owners who want the best for their animals.
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Perham, Minnesota
$288 millionA part of KLN Family Brands, Tuffy’s Pet Foods’ brands include NutriSource, PureVita, and Choice. They also have a line called Element, which focuses on providing dogs with natural meat sources and probiotics.
Tuffy’s serves customers all over the world and has recently opened Tuffy’s Treat Company in Delano, Minnesota, which boasts a 170,000 square-foot state-of-the-art facility.
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Author
Abby is a writer who is passionate about the power of story. Whether it’s communicating complicated topics in a clear way or helping readers connect with another person or place from the comfort of their couch. Abby attended Oral Roberts University in Tulsa, Oklahoma, where she earned a degree in writing with concentrations in journalism and business.
