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.
145% Tariffs on China Just Rewired the Pet Industry's Cost Structure
Trump's April 2 tariffs put 145% duties on Chinese imports, rewiring the pet industry cost basis for toys, accessories, and packaging.
Pet M&A Just Doubled. 18 Deals in Q1 2026 Signal the Thaw Operators Have Been Waiting For.
Pet M&A volume more than doubled in early 2026, with 18 transactions versus 8 in the same period last year. Vet & health companies account for half of all deals, strategic buyer activity tripled, and PE exits are expected to accelerate. The Products segment remains frozen amid tariff uncertainty.
Nulo's Olympic Bet Is Paying Off Where It Matters: Independent Retail
Nulo posted 8.1% sales growth over the latest 52-week period, the highest among the top 15 pet specialty brands. The Apax Partners-backed company paired its Milan Cortina 2026 Olympic campaign with a retail activation program across 2,500+ independent stores.
A Plant-Based Brand Just Won the Pet Industry's Biggest Trade Show Award
Bramble, a vet-formulated plant-based fresh dog food startup, won first place in the Dog Food and Treats category at Global Pet Expo's 2026 Best in Show Awards. The win, voted on by trade buyers and retailers, signals growing commercial viability for plant-based pet food beyond the niche aisle.
Fermented Protein for Pet Food Just Crossed the Production Threshold
Finnish biotech Enifer has completed the first industrial-scale production run of PEKILO Pet, a fermentation-derived mycoprotein with 60% protein and 22% fiber. Pet food manufacturers are running formulation trials, marking the first time an alternative protein ingredient has reached commercial volumes for pet food production.
Most Vet AI Companies Won't Show Their Numbers. Vetology Just Published All of Them.
Vetology expanded its public AI performance dashboard to eleven metrics per classifier across 89+ conditions, backed by 300,000+ validated patient cases. The move highlights a transparency gap in veterinary AI, where a 2026 audit found nearly two-thirds of vendors disclose no validation data publicly.