The trend for high protein pet food products seems to be here to stay. It’s standard practice in today’s market for all brands to offer at least one high protein option in their product portfolio. Further, for many years now, pet food manufacturers have explored the utilization of novel and niche proteins in addition to traditional animal proteins (i.e. beef, poultry, fish, etc.). One could argue that the incorporation of niche proteins in pet food formulations should no longer be deemed a trend — rather, a necessary long-term option in a product portfolio.
高蛋白宠物食品的趋势似乎会持续下去。在当今市场上,所有品牌的标准做法是在其产品组合中提供至少一种高蛋白选择。此外,多年来,宠物食品制造商已经探索了除传统动物蛋白(即牛肉、家禽、鱼等)之外的新型和小众蛋白的利用。有人可能会争辩说,在宠物食品配方中加入利基蛋白不应再被视为一种趋势,而是产品组合中必要的长期选择。
While the protein types that we see infiltrate the pet food industry vary from year to year, niche proteins are not leaving the pet food market in the near or distant future. In fact, pet owners are becoming more discriminant in their selection of proteins in their pet’s diets. Pet food formulations that incorporate lower-quality animal proteins are generally viewed as inferior. As a result, pet food manufacturers are forced to look towards high-quality proteins which have previously not been considered in the ingredient stream for their industry. As the pet food industry continues to utilize more — and higher quality — protein, the demand results in competition with proteins intended for human consumption. Currently the demand of the pet food industry is not currently at a level which could impact the supply of proteins for human consumption. However, as meat consumption and pet ownership increase globally (in response to an improved global economy), the demand for high-quality proteins in pet food manufacturing may not be sustainable.
虽然我们看到渗透到宠物食品行业的蛋白质类型每年都不同,但利基蛋白质不会在近期或遥远的将来离开宠物食品市场。事实上,宠物主人在选择宠物饮食中的蛋白质时变得越来越挑剔。含有低质量动物蛋白的宠物食品配方通常被认为是劣质的。结果,宠物食品制造商被迫寻找以前在其行业的原料流中没有考虑过的高质量蛋白质。随着宠物食品行业继续使用更多和更高质量的蛋白质,需求导致与供人类食用的蛋白质竞争。目前,宠物食品行业的需求尚未达到可能影响人类消费蛋白质供应的水平。
History tells us that trends in human foods eventually make their way into the pet food industry. Mars Pet Nutrition recently noted that previously, human trends took five to seven years to reach the pet food industry. Now, human food trends transition into the pet food industry within a modest two years. In the past few years, there has been a noticeable “humanization” of pet food products and largely, pet owners want their pets to consume a diet that is similar to their own. Recently, perhaps the most pervasive human food trend to impact the pet food industry is a focus on the social/value-based traits regarding pet food ingredients — namely proteins. Now, not only do pet owners prefer a pet food with protein as the primary ingredient, they have an increasing interest in how the protein was procured and processed. The demand for and production of pet food products which meat value-based criteria (i.e. organic, all-natural, local, etc.) is rising exponentially. Similarly, as observed in the human food sector for several years, modern pet owners tend to prefer a diet which excludes ingredients they believe to be harmful or offer no nutritional value (i.e. GMOs, hormones, artificial preservatives, etc.). Scientifically, no data exists to demonstrate the health benefits of such rations. Nonetheless, the perceived health benefits will continue to drive an increase in these protein options.
历史告诉我们,人类食品的趋势最终会进入宠物食品行业。玛氏宠物营养公司最近指出,以前,人类趋势需要五到七年才能到达宠物食品行业。现在,人类食品趋势在短短两年内过渡到宠物食品行业。在过去的几年里,宠物食品出现了明显的“人性化”,宠物主人希望他们的宠物食用与自己相似的饮食。最近,影响宠物食品行业的最普遍的人类食品趋势可能是关注宠物食品成分的社会/价值特征——即蛋白质。现在,宠物主人不仅更喜欢以蛋白质为主要成分的宠物食品,而且对蛋白质的采购和加工方式也越来越感兴趣。对基于肉类价值标准(即有机、全天然、本地等)的宠物食品的需求和生产呈指数增长。同样,正如多年来在人类食品领域所观察到的那样,现代宠物主人倾向于选择不含他们认为有害或不提供营养价值的成分(即转基因生物、激素、人工防腐剂等)的饮食。从科学上讲,没有数据可以证明这种口粮对健康的益处。尽管如此,感知到的健康益处将继续推动这些蛋白质选择的增加。现代宠物主人倾向于选择不含他们认为有害或没有营养价值的成分(即转基因生物、激素、人工防腐剂等)的饮食。从科学上讲,没有数据可以证明这种口粮对健康的益处。尽管如此,感知到的健康益处将继续推动这些蛋白质选择的增加。现代宠物主人倾向于选择不含他们认为有害或没有营养价值的成分(即转基因生物、激素、人工防腐剂等)的饮食。从科学上讲,没有数据可以证明这种口粮对健康的益处。尽管如此,感知到的健康益处将继续推动这些蛋白质选择的增加。
The adoption of non-animal-based proteins quickly, and successfully, transitioned from the human food to pet food market. However, perhaps the most interesting, if not controversial, human protein trend is the rapidly rising interest in animal-proteins derived from cell-culture, or “fake meat.” The regulatory landscape around these products in the human food sector is still being determined. Furthermore, the commercial-scale production of such products may be several years in the future. However, as noted, trends which influence the human food sector eventually transition into the pet food industry. Some companies, including Boulder, Colorado-based Bond Pet Foods, are forecasting that the pet food industry may be the perfect landscape for such a novel protein. Therefore, in the near future, it is likely that pet food manufacturers will also have the conversation of where — if at all — these products fit into the pet food portfolio.
非动物性蛋白质的采用迅速而成功地从人类食品过渡到宠物食品市场。然而,也许最有趣(如果没有争议的话)人类蛋白质趋势是对源自细胞培养物的动物蛋白质或“假肉”的兴趣迅速上升。人类食品领域围绕这些产品的监管格局仍在确定中。此外,此类产品的商业规模生产可能需要数年时间。然而,如前所述,影响人类食品行业的趋势最终会转变为宠物食品行业。一些公司,包括总部位于科罗拉多州博尔德的邦德宠物食品公司,预测宠物食品行业可能是这种新型蛋白质的完美前景。因此,在不久的将来,
The conversations regarding proteins and their uses in the pet food industry have evolved tremendously over the past several decades. If we look to trends seen in the human food sector, it is evident that these conversations will continue to challenge pet food manufacturers to explore new options without sacrificing the quality, nutrition, or value of their products.
在过去的几十年里,关于蛋白质及其在宠物食品行业中的用途的讨论发生了巨大的变化。如果我们看看人类食品行业的趋势,很明显,这些对话将继续挑战宠物食品制造商在不牺牲产品质量、营养或价值的情况下探索新选择。