Half the value, half the shelf?

Europe’s cat population has been outnumbering its dog population for years, but the commercial implications of that lead are only now becoming clear. In its Facts & Figures 2026, published in June and covering the year 2024, ­Fediaf puts 111 million cats against 91 million dogs and attributes 50% of European pet food value to the cat sector, against 46% for dogs – from 41% and 58% of production volume respectively. PET worldwide reported these headline figures in issue 3/2026. The question they leave unanswered is another: does the space devoted to cats in the average specialty store reflect a category that now represents half the value of the market?

National data suggests that the shift is not an artifact of Fediaf’s revised country list. In Germany, cat food was the clear winner among food segments in 2025, according to figures published by ZZF and IVH in April. Sales through bricks-and-mortar retail reached a good €2.3 bn, up 1.3%, with wet food at around €1.6 bn (plus 1.1%), snacks including cat milk at €380 m (plus 3.0%) and dry food at €379 m (plus 0.5%). By contrast, supplies and accessories across all species fell by 4.6% to just under €1.1 bn. The consumables side of the cat business is growing while the hardware side is under pressure — a pattern that has direct impact on how a store earns its rent.

Italy shows the same picture from a different angle. The 19th Assalco-Zoomark report, presented at Interzoo in May and for the first time compiled on an omnichannel basis, values Italian pet food and pet care at €5.3 bn for 2025, up 2.5%. Cat products account for €2.35 bn, or 56% of the dog and cat food market. The most striking single figure sits in the accessories chapter: cat hygiene and health grew by 18%, while litter reached €328.2 m, up 2%. The trend is not limited to Europe: Euromonitor International forecasted a compound annual growth rate of 6% for cat food between 2020 and 2025, compared to 3.8% for dog food.

Structurally, the cat category behaves differently from the dog category, and this is where its value density comes from. According to Fediaf, wet food accounts for 61% of European cat food volume and 60% of value, compared to 30% and 23% for dogs. Wet formats are heavier to ship, more expensive to produce and more demanding in terms of packaging – the sector’s exposure to the Packaging and Packaging Waste Regulation is largely a cat exposure. They also carry the hydration argument, which…