Purina PetCare powers Nestlé’s growth in key markets during H1 2024

GLOBAL – Purina PetCare significantly boosted Nestlé’s growth in major pet food markets in the first half of 2024, particularly in North America and Europe, driven by premium brands like Purina Pro Plan, Fancy Feast, and Purina ONE.

Nestlé reported total sales of approximately USD 51.1 billion in the first half of 2024, a decrease of 2.7% from the previous year. 

Despite this overall decline, Purina PetCare’s performance has been a bright spot, demonstrating the division’s resilience and strategic importance within the company.

Overall, Purina’s global sales reached approximately USD 10.74 billion in the first half of 2024, a slight increase from approximately USD 10.64 billion in the same period of 2023. 

The trading operating profit for the business was USD 2.35 billion, marking a 6.7% increase from the previous year.

In North America, Purina Pro Plan, Fancy Feast, and Dog Chow were the leading brands driving this growth.

The company’s functional pet consumables range expansion, including new products like Pro Plan Vital Systems for cats and Pro Plan Veterinary Diets Elemental for dogs, played a crucial role in maintaining momentum.

Similarly, Purina PetCare contributed significantly to Nestlé’s growth in Europe, thanks to differentiated offerings across premium brands like Gourmet, Purina ONE, and Felix. This strategy helped Purina achieve mid-single-digit growth in the region.

In contrast, the growth in Latin America was nearly flat, with brands such as Felix and Friskies supporting the business. 

However, Purina PetCare experienced double-digit growth in China, fueled by new product launches and strong e-commerce momentum for Purina Pro Plan.

Anna Manz, Nestlé’s Chief Financial Officer, noted that Purina PetCare continues to be the largest growth contributor for Nestlé, gaining momentum and market share despite the post-COVID normalization and recent inflation spikes. 

Anna Manz also explained that the pet care category is seeing some deceleration after exceptional growth over the past four years. 

“This is driven by a slowing contribution from pricing and some softening of category volume growth as consumers spend less time at home. We see this as a transitory phase. Overall, pet populations are still growing, and the pet-human bond continues to strengthen. Therefore, the category fundamentals are strong. We continue to outperform the category with market share gains.”

Nestlé expects to drive further internal growth by launching innovations that address consumer trends and expanding their large iconic brands. The company has updated its full-year outlook for 2024, anticipating organic sales growth of at least 3%.

Sign up to receive our email newsletters with the latest news updates and insights from Africa and the World HERE.