Rising pet ownership, shifting cultural attitudes, and urban demand for specialised products are driving significant growth in India’s pet care industry, attracting top FMCG companies and startups alike.
India’s pet care market is drawing a growing crowd of fast-moving consumer goods companies as rising pet ownership, higher spending on nutrition and healthcare, and the shift towards premium products create fresh room for growth. Industry data cited by Euromonitor put the market at about Rs 6,300 crore in 2025, with annual growth of roughly 13%, and the research firm expects expansion of more than 15% a year through 2030. That scale is still modest beside India’s biggest consumer categories, but that is precisely what is making it attractive to large brands looking for a market with headroom.
The deeper change is cultural. Pets are increasingly being treated as members of the family, and that is encouraging owners to spend not just on basic food, but also on grooming, veterinary care, accessories and wellness products. Euromonitor says India has about 40 million pet dogs and four million pet cats, with demand rising most strongly in cities where higher incomes and busier lifestyles are feeding demand for convenient, specialised and health-focused products. The strongest gains are coming from premium nutrition, including wet cat food and formulas aimed at specific ages, breeds and health needs.
That opportunity has brought in some of the country’s best-known consumer companies. Nestlé India, Reliance Consumer Products, Godrej Industries and Wipro Consumer Care have all moved into the category, challenging the long-standing dominance of US-based Mars, the maker of Pedigree. Nestlé has said pet food should become one of its faster-growing businesses, while acknowledging that the category remains relatively small in absolute terms. In India, its pet food sales in the prepared dishes and cooking aids segment posted high double-digit growth in FY26, helped by new launches, broader distribution and stronger engagement with pet owners.
Godrej Pet Care is among the most aggressive entrants. The company has expanded its Ninja dog food brand beyond Tamil Nadu into Karnataka, Andhra Pradesh, Telangana and Kerala, and says it has committed Rs 500 crore to pet care over the next few years. The business estimates that South India alone accounts for Rs 1,800 crore to Rs 2,000 crore of the country’s pet food market, and it is positioning Ninja around science-led nutrition, including probiotics, prebiotics and 37 nutrients. Wipro has launched Snuggles, while Reliance introduced Waggies in November 2025, underlining how quickly the field is filling out.
Competition is not coming only from traditional consumer groups. Start-ups and digital-first brands are also gaining ground by selling directly through e-commerce, quick commerce and subscriptions. Euromonitor says those channels are reshaping how urban pet owners buy, making it easier for newer players to build relationships without matching the physical distribution reach of incumbents from day one. The result is a broader pet care ecosystem, with nutrition increasingly linked to grooming, healthcare and accessories. For investors and companies alike, the attraction lies in a category that remains underpenetrated, but is steadily becoming more sophisticated and more valuable.
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