Products with pedigree

While out food shopping last Christmas, I had to do a double take. Browsing the seasonal party snacks section my eyes fell upon a turkey & cranberry ... flavoured dog bone at the end of the aisle. I raised a wry smile and tried to visualise the 'consumer panel' conducted to get the product to market.

More recently, I observed a range of three designer dinners for dogs on the shelves of Tesco as part of its Finest range. Would the dogs, or indeed their owners, go for such a marketing ploy?

I set out to conduct my own in-house research using Ella, my pedigree miniature schnauzer. Ella is renowned for her discerning pallet; she demands the best and could be described as the Michael Winner of the canine world. She steadfastly refuses to consume any market-leading branded pet food, so must surely be the target consumer here.

For the evaluation we had selected 'Succulent Chicken in a White Sauce with Vegetables'. The Finest meals are conveniently vacuum packed and uncannily resemble some of our favourite human dishes, although upon opening it bore a distinct similarity to some long-haul airline meals I have eaten. But despite my initial misgivings fickle Ella licked the plate clean.

Over the past year or so there has been dynamic niche growth within the pet food sector for products addressing specific dietary requirements connected with age, obesity and mineral fortification. Furthermore, the market has seen a surge in premium recipe development which is in a convenient format. Does this sound all too familiar?

With the multiples looking to diversify into other, more profitable sectors outside 'food' (human that is), this niche is one worth exploring by non pet-food manufacturers as the line between pet food and human food becomes blurred.

So what's next? Who knows, but one thing's for sure: it now seems a proven fact that a dog definitely isn't just for Christmas.

Angela Mitton is creative product developer at NPD consultancy Beetroot & Orange​ http://www.beetrootandorange.co.uk​