CLEVELAND — Packaging for refrigerated pet food and treats will experience the fastest growth of all other pet food formats, according to Freedonia Group’s new US Pet Food Packaging report. This demand continues to be driven by consumer interest in fresh and frozen nutritional products for their four-legged companions.

According to CoBank, dollar sales for fresh dog food have risen 86.5% and those for fresh cat food have risen 53.8% from 2021 to 2023. Additionally, in 2023, the fresh/frozen pet food segment was one of the few to have witnessed both dollar growth and unit growth. According to NielsenIQ, the category saw dollar growth of 21.4% and unit growth of 14.3%. 

What’s more, the American Pet Products Association (APPA) found in its “2024 Dog and Cat Report: Strategic Insights from the National Pet Owners Survey” that fresh pet food formats are on the rise for pet parents. The percentage of consumers who mostly feed their dog’s fresh formats rose from 4% in 2018 to 8% in 2024. For comparison, the percentage of consumers who feed dry decreased from 74% in 2018 to 67% in 2024. 

With this in mind, packaging for the fresh/frozen category is expected to increase more than 20% annually, reaching an estimated $152 million in 2028 with units rising to 784 million, according to Freedonia. 

Currently refrigerated pet food products are skewed towards dogs, with dog food accounting for 96% of refrigerated pet food packaging sales in 2023, according to Freedonia. However, this isn’t stopping fresh pet food companies, like Freshpet, from catering to felines. 

Keep up with the latest pet food trends on our Trends page.