Pet food bags are getting smaller and prices are up as companies try to maintain profits in the face of soaring commodity pricesPet owners, get ready for sticker shock. Retailers and manufacturers are hiking pet food prices, and the cost of kibble is expected to climb even higher in coming months. At PetSmart (PETM), the nation's largest pet-store chain, the cost of Hill's Science Diet dog chow is up about $2 a bag, to $36 this year, says Michael Sapp, vice-president of dog and cat consumables. Sapp notes that other top-selling brands such as Pedigree, manufactured by Mars, and Purina, made by Nestlé, have been shrinking the size of their bags. "We're getting price increases and package downsizing," he says. "People are paying the same amount for less product."
In recent years, as more Americans treat their furry friends just like another member of the family, the pet products industry has become a $41 billion-a-year business featuring such items as organic foods, diamond-encrusted collars, and private kennels with TVs tuned to the Animal Planet cable network.With the economy slowing and human food prices rising, some consumers are cutting back on such extras as a fancy new dog collar. But they're more likely to cancel a pricey vacation than change Fluffy's diet.
"I'm more interested in the quality than price," says Cathy Tuite, the Staten Island (N.Y.) owner of a miniature pinscher named Gracie. Tuite recently switched to grain-free, high-protein, oven-baked Wellness brand chow to address an issue with Gracie's pancreas. "They're not around long enough as it is," she says. "We have to take care of them."
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