Global Pet Expo’s return as an in-person event on March 23-25 was an impressive step forward for the pet food and pet products industries. While I didn’t attend personally this year, my colleagues Lindsay Beaton and Tim Wall did, reporting numerous trends from GPE that could shape future business developments.
However, both publications also noted a reduction in new product launches–particularly of pet food items–at GPE 2022 in person versus online events like 2021 and 2021. Most observers were expecting robust new product activity at these in-person events but instead noticed an apparent reduction in activity this time around. Why this dropoff?
Beaton, Wall and I discussed potential causes for why fewer pet food brands introduced new products at GPE; I’d love to know if anyone has thoughts.
Wall attended Superzoo 2021 (also after returning in person from a pandemic-induced hiatus), where many new pet food products had just launched at that time. Perhaps with all the disruption caused by pandemic outbreak, companies and brands were unwilling to commit resources for another round of launches just seven months later?
Supply chain issues caused by COVID-19 are perhaps its most noticeable effects, and pet food companies in particular may face difficulty sourcing ingredients and packaging materials needed for existing products, or delays getting these to market; as a result, pet food companies would likely prefer not to introduce numerous new offerings which might exacerbate this situation further.
If you’re facing supply chain challenges–which we all are these days–experts do have some solutions. Cindy Yakich, chief procurement officer of Alphia, shared several suggestions in a blog post of theirs; these included considering local suppliers when currently using suppliers from outside your own country and prioritizing planning and forecasting activities.
Rodney Nye, Senior Vice President of Business Development-Dedicated Contract Services for J.B. Hunt Transport Inc. echoed this point during the American Feed Industry Association (AFIA) Purchasing and Ingredient Supplier Conference from March 8-10 2022. “His advice to industry is: Position yourself as preferred customer,” wrote Victoria Broehm, Director of Communications for AFIA. Work closely with shippers to make strategic decisions to secure reliable capacity.”
Communication Is Key
Yakich offers another important tip when it comes to successful pet food product development: be open and transparent with all members of your supply chain, including retailers. Communication is essential in so many aspects of having a successful product on the market – including its creation in the first place! Furthermore, due to pandemic disruptions disrupted workplaces and workflows may have compromised new product development processes as well as necessary communication pieces of the process for some companies.
Leah Lambrakis, Vice President of R&D, Nutrition & Scientific Affairs for Simmons Pet Food addressed the value of communication during an episode of Beaton’s new podcast Trending: Pet Food. According to Lambrakis, communicating early in product development helps ensure its successful launch within timeline constraints – communicating early is “essential”. She added “communication is critical.”
Lambrakis will offer practical insights and honest reflections into new product development in her podcast episode (and others Beaton has posted; all are insightful and useful). Furthermore, Lambrakis will present at Petfood Essentials 2022 on May 2, discussing managing timelines, expectations and competing priorities when launching a pet food product.