Below are the 15 countries that exported the highest dollar value worth of dog or cat food during 2020.

1. Germany: US$2.2 billion (12.7% of exported dog or cat food)
2. United States: $1.7 billion (10.1%)
3. France: $1.7 billion (9.7%)
4. Thailand: $1.6 billion (9.6%)
5. Poland: $1.3 billion (7.6%)
6. Netherlands: $1.2 billion (7.3%)
7. China: $983.8 million (5.7%)
8. Canada: $750.4 million (4.4%)
9. Hungary: $603 million (3.5%)
10. Czech Republic: $552.4 million (3.2%)
11. Italy: $495.5 million (2.9%)
12. Austria: $471.4 million (2.7%)
13. United Kingdom: $455.1 million (2.7%)
14. Spain: $400.5 million (2.3%)
15. Belgium: $248.4 million (1.4%)

By value, the listed 15 countries shipped 85.9% of global dog or cat food exports in 2020.

Among the top exporters, the fastest-growing dog or cat food exporters since 2019 were: Belgium (up 37%), Poland (up 28.4%), Canada (up 25.2%) and Czech Republic (up 25.1%).

Those countries that posted the mildest increases in their exported dog or cat food sales were the Netherlands (up 4.3%), United States (up 5.8%) and United Kingdom (up 5.9%).

The following countries posted the highest positive net exports for dog or cat food during 2020. Investopedia defines net exports as the value of a country’s total exports minus the value of its total imports. Thus, the statistics below present the surplus between the value of each country’s exported dog or cat food and its import purchases for that same commodity.

1. Thailand: US$1.6 billion (net export surplus up 19.8% since 2019)
2. France: $783.3 million (down -3.8%)
3. Netherlands: $568.2 million (down -3.5%)
4. Germany: $536.5 million (up 76.3%)
5. United States: $493 million (down -18.9%)
6. Hungary: $419 million (up 2.7%)
7. China: $362.3 million (down -33.8%)
8. Poland: $324.6 million (down -0.1%)
9. Czech Republic: $244 million (up 35.5%)
10. Vietnam: $89.3 million (up 152.6%)
11. Argentina: $83.4 million (up 5.9%)
12. Lithuania: $61 million (down -39.1%)
13. Serbia: $59.3 million (up 47.5%)
14. Brazil: $42.3 million (up 52.5%)
15. New Zealand: $39.6 million (down reversing a -$233,000 trade deficit)

Thailand posted the highest surplus in the international trade of dog or cat food. In turn, this positive cashflow confirms Thailands’ strong competitive advantage for this specific product category.

The following countries posted the highest negative net exports for dog or cat food during 2020. Investopedia defines net exports as the value of a country’s total exports minus the value of its total imports. Thus, the statistics below present the deficit between the value of each country’s imported dog or cat food purchases and its exports for that same commodity.

1. Japan: -US$629.9 million (net export deficit up 2.7% since 2019)
2. United Kingdom: -$549.2 million (up 10.3%)
3. Italy: -$224.9 million (down -12.4%)
4. Romania: -$223.2 million (up 26.3%)
5. Russia: -$220.9 million (down -5.3%)
6. South Korea: -$203.2 million (down -1%)
7. Australia: -$194.6 million (up 26.3%)
8. Taiwan: -$183.9 million (up 5%)
9. Malaysia: -$179.9 million (up 10.8%)
10. Portugal: -$166.9 million (up 7.2%)
11. Canada: -$147.3 million (down -26.6%)
12. Ukraine: -$131.9 million (up 31.3%)
13. Greece: -$125.8 million (up 12.5%)
14. Finland: -$124.7 million (up 0.3%)
15. Indonesia: -$119.7 million (up 26.9%)

Japan incurred the highest deficit in the international trade of dog or cat food. In turn, this negative cashflow highlights Japan’s arduous competitive disadvantage for this specific product category but also signals opportunities for dog or cat food-supplying countries that help satisfy the powerful demand.

Leading Pet Food Brands

Below are major dog and cat food brands that represent established entities engaged in the international trade of pet food. The home country for each is shown within parenthesis.

• Addiction Foods (Singapore)
• AvoDerm (United States)
• Essential Foods (Denmark)
• Eukanuba (United States)
• Freshpet (United States)
• Hill’s Pet Nutrition (United States)
• Iams (United States)
• Natural Balance Pet Foods (United States)
• Nature’s Variety (United States)
• Nutro Products (United States)
• Pedigree Petfoods (United States)
• Ralston Purina (United States)
• Royal Canin (France)
• Solid Gold (United States)
• Vegepet (United States)