AFIA’s new report maps the animal food industry’s priorities
Bottom line
The American Feed Industry Association has released its 2025-2026 State of the U.S. Animal Food Industry Report, framing the sector as economically large, operationally resilient, and increasingly focused on regulatory modernization, food safety, and sustainability. AFIA said the industry’s 2023 footprint included nearly 5,650 U.S. animal food manufacturers, more than 80,300 jobs, $267.1 billion in total sales, $98.4 billion in value-added contributions, and $18.5 billion in taxes. The report also highlights more than 1,000 facilities certified through Safe Feed/Safe Food programs, ongoing work around ingredient approval pathways, and advocacy tied to trade, supply chain security, and pet food labeling reform. (ebs.publicnow.com)
Why it matters: For veterinary professionals, the report is a useful snapshot of the forces shaping the pet food supply that clinics and pet parents rely on. AFIA is emphasizing newer ingredient review routes, including FDA’s Animal Food Ingredient Consultation process and AAFCO’s Scientific Review of Ingredient Submissions program, while also pointing to heightened food safety expectations such as FDA’s direction for manufacturers using uncooked or unpasteurized poultry- or cattle-derived materials to account for H5N1 in food safety plans. That combination matters because regulatory changes, manufacturing standards, and ingredient availability can all affect product formulation, safety conversations, and client guidance in practice. (petfoodprocessing.net)
What to watch: Watch for how AFIA’s policy priorities, including ingredient pathway reform and the PURR Act of 2025, translate into practical changes for pet food labeling, innovation, and market access over the next year. (congress.gov)
The American Feed Industry Association’s new 2025-2026 State of the U.S. Animal Food Industry Report is less a simple scorecard than a policy and market snapshot for a sector under pressure to prove resilience. AFIA says the U.S. animal food industry generated $267.1 billion in total sales in 2023, supported more than 80,300 jobs, and included nearly 5,650 manufacturers, while also making the case that the sector is advancing on safety, sustainability, and workforce development despite regulatory and trade uncertainty. (ebs.publicnow.com)
The backdrop is a pet food and animal nutrition market that’s still growing, but getting more complex. APPA data presented earlier this year showed total U.S. pet industry sales reached $158 billion in 2025, with pet food and treats alone accounting for $68.3 billion, while analysts described the category as returning to “real growth” after several years in which inflation did much of the work. That matters because AFIA’s report arrives at a moment when manufacturers are balancing consumer demand, omni-channel distribution, cost pressure, and scrutiny of ingredients and labeling. (petfoodindustry.com)
AFIA’s report leans heavily on regulatory progress and risk management. According to Pet Food Processing’s coverage of the report, the association is tracking the post-MOU landscape after FDA CVM and AAFCO moved away from their longstanding ingredient review arrangement. In its place, FDA has described the Animal Food Ingredient Consultation, or AFIC, as an interim consultation pathway, while AAFCO and Kansas State Olathe have launched the Scientific Review of Ingredient Submissions, or SRIS, to review ingredients supported under a GRAS-style framework. AFIA is also continuing to support federal legislation including the Innovative FEED Act and the PURR Act of 2025, which would create a more nationally uniform framework for companion animal pet food labeling and advertising. (petfoodprocessing.net)
Food safety remains central to the message. AFIA says more than 1,000 facilities are certified through one of its Safe Feed/Safe Food programs, and the association has continued member education around preventive controls. That comes as FDA has specifically required cat and dog food manufacturers covered by the preventive controls for animal food rule, and using uncooked or unpasteurized poultry- or cattle-derived materials, to reanalyze their food safety plans for H5N1 risk. For practices fielding client questions about raw diets, recalls, or ingredient sourcing, those regulatory signals are especially relevant. (petfoodprocessing.net)
The report also ties industry messaging to sustainability and supply chain arguments. AFIA cited IFEEDER data showing pet food manufacturers used more than 4 million tons of upcycled ingredients, representing more than half of pet food formulations, and pointed to life cycle assessment tools intended to help companies measure environmental impact. Separate IFEEDER-backed research released in 2025 also quantified the pet food sector’s reliance on more than 600 ingredients and highlighted the economic role of rendered and agricultural inputs, reinforcing the industry’s broader case that pet food manufacturing is deeply linked to the rest of the food and agriculture system. (petfoodprocessing.net)
Industry reaction has largely been supportive, though mostly from trade and sector publications rather than outside critics or independent analysts. Pet Food Processing presented the report as a roadmap for AFIA’s regulatory, trade, safety, and sustainability agenda, while Feedstuffs also flagged the release as a notable industry development. In that sense, the report functions as both an annual benchmark and an advocacy document, designed to shape how policymakers, manufacturers, and allied stakeholders view the sector’s priorities. (petfoodprocessing.net)
Why it matters: For veterinary professionals, this report is most useful as an indicator of where pet food oversight and product development may be headed next. Ingredient review modernization could influence how quickly new ingredients reach market and how companies substantiate safety. Federal efforts around labeling uniformity could eventually affect how diets are marketed to pet parents and discussed in exam rooms. And AFIA’s emphasis on H5N1 preparedness, trade resilience, and sustainability reflects the same issues that can shape availability, pricing, and risk communication for companion animal diets. Those are not abstract policy questions for clinics; they can show up in nutrition counseling, client trust, and conversations about raw, premium, or novel-ingredient products. (fda.gov)
What to watch: Over the next 12 months, watch whether SRIS and AFIC gain wider acceptance with state regulators, whether the PURR Act or other AFIA-backed measures advance in Congress, and whether disease-related food safety expectations continue to tighten for raw and minimally processed pet food manufacturers. (petfoodprocessing.net)