Pet Industry News
The deals, launches, and strategic moves behind the brands and operators shaping the industry.
Escalade Buys ASL Solutions, Betting on Pet Hard Goods
Escalade, the public sporting goods company behind Goalrilla and STIGA, has acquired ASL Solutions, a founder-owned manufacturer of insulated dog and cat houses. The deal, terms undisclosed, hands Escalade a rotational molding capability it didn't have before and marks its first move into pet hard goods.
Purina's $644M Italy Plant Bets the Premium Fight on Wet Food, Not Fresh
Nestlé Purina confirmed a CHF 520 million ($644 million) superpremium wet pet food factory in Mantova, Italy, with production starting in 2029. The category leader is betting Europe's premium migration lands on shelf-stable wet rather than refrigerated fresh — and the three-year capacity gap before the plant opens is the operator opportunity.
A Fresh-Food Franchise Enters Raw, Betting In-House Kitchens Undercut the National Brands
Natural Hounds, a fresh dog food franchise, launches a raw line on August 1 made in-house and batch-tested for safety. The real story is the cost structure: raw as a line extension off existing kitchens, priced below national warehouse brands, inside a franchise model reporting unit-level EBITDA margins in the low-to-mid 20% range.
Virbac Grows Companion Animal 10% in the Same Half That Flattened Boehringer
Virbac grew H1 2026 revenue 7.4% to €768 million, with companion animal up 10% and North America up 10.1%, and now targets the top of its guidance range. In the same half, Boehringer's animal health sales went nearly flat. The divergence shows chronic-care mix, not market beta, is deciding who grows through the vet-traffic slump.
Phillips Puts a Grocery Supply-Chain Veteran in the CEO Seat Three Months After the Central Deal
Phillips Pet Food & Supplies will make president Nick Christensen CEO on July 27, with third-generation leader Blaine Phillips moving to executive chairman. The handoff lands three months after Central Garden & Pet folded its distribution business into the Phillips platform, and it puts a grocery-wholesale operator in charge of pet specialty's consolidated middle layer.
Elanco Turns to the Ad Regulator to Slow PetIQ's Seresto Look-Alike
The National Advertising Division sided with Elanco and told PetIQ to modify or drop four brand-superiority claims for its PetArmor Extend flea and tick collar, sparing only the claim tied to the product's active ingredients. It is the second Elanco challenge against PetIQ in under two years, and a template for how incumbents blunt cheaper look-alikes without going to court.
BioCraft Publishes Cultivated Pet Food's First Public Safety Dossier to Set the Category's Trust Bar
BioCraft released the cultivated pet food category's first complete public safety dossier on July 17, covering the mouse-cell line behind its ingredient, and proposed a disclosure standard for the field. In a market where regulators certify facilities but not ingredients, the first company to open its data sets the trust bar competitors and formulators now have to answer.