Brazilian Pet Food Manufacturers (2025)

Brazil is the world’s second-largest producer of dry pet food and exported $580.6 million worth of pet products in 2024, a 29.7% jump over 2023, according to ABINPET (the Brazilian Pet Industry Association). Pet food and treats made up 86% of that total. The country produced 4 million metric tons of pet food in 2024 and ships to 46 countries, with Colombia, Uruguay, Chile, Bolivia, and the UAE leading the destination list.

Why Brazil Became a Pet Food Powerhouse

The math behind Brazil’s rise in pet food is straightforward: cheap protein inputs, massive domestic demand, and an increasingly sophisticated manufacturing base.

Brazil is the world’s largest soybean producer, harvesting 169 million metric tons in the 2024/25 season according to the USDA. It is also the world’s largest chicken meat exporter and third-largest corn producer. Soybean meal, chicken by-products, and corn are the three primary ingredients in most commercial pet food formulations. Brazilian manufacturers sit on top of these supply chains, giving them a structural cost advantage that competitors in Europe or North America simply cannot match.

The domestic market reinforces this advantage. Brazil’s pet sector generated R$75.4 billion ($12.8 billion) in total revenue in 2024, according to GlobalPETS. Pet food alone accounted for 54.1% of that figure. With a pet population that includes roughly 35 million dogs (second-largest globally), Brazilian manufacturers have a massive home market to absorb fixed costs before a single kilogram leaves the port.

Key Brazilian Pet Food Manufacturers

The Brazilian pet food landscape includes both homegrown leaders and multinational operations. Here are the companies that matter.

PremieRpet (Grandfood)

PremieRpet, owned by the Grandfood group, dominates the premium and super-premium segments in Brazil. The company’s Golden brand holds approximately 15.7% of animal nutrition sales in Brazil, according to Euromonitor data cited by AllPetFood. In 2022, PremieRpet opened a R$1.1 billion factory in Porto Amazonas, Parana, spanning 92,000 square meters of built area on a 1 million square meter property. The facility can produce 660,000 tons of dry pet food per year, effectively doubling the company’s previous capacity. PremieRpet sells through pet shops and veterinary offices under the Golden and Premier brands, with plans to add snack and wet food production lines.

BRF Pet (Hercosul and Mogiana)

BRF, one of the world’s largest food companies (known for Sadia and Perdigao poultry brands), entered pet food in 2021 by acquiring Hercosul and Mogiana Alimentos for a combined R$1.35 billion. Hercosul produces dry and wet dog and cat food under the Biofresh, Three Dogs, Three Cats, Primocao, and Primogato brands. Mogiana has been in pet food for over 46 years, manufacturing the super-premium Guabi Natural line alongside Gran Plus (high premium), Faro (premium), and Heroi and Cat Meal (standard). BRF’s integration of these two companies with its existing poultry processing infrastructure gives it a unique protein supply chain advantage.

Total Alimentos (ADM Animal Nutrition)

Total Alimentos, now owned by ADM Animal Nutrition, built its reputation on a distinctive technology: creating wet food flavors in dry food formats. The company operates private-label partnerships with large retail chains including Walmart and Carrefour. Total Alimentos also manufactures under the DentaClean and Kelko brands. ADM’s global distribution network positions Total Alimentos for accelerated international expansion.

Mars and Nestle Purina

The two global giants hold significant share in Brazil. Together with BRF, PremieRpet, and Colgate-Palmolive (Hill’s Pet Nutrition), the top five players accounted for 28.1% of the market in 2024, according to Mordor Intelligence. Mars operates the Pedigree, Whiskas, and Royal Canin brands locally, while Nestle Purina runs the Purina Pro Plan and Dog Chow lines. Their presence validates the market’s scale but also intensifies competition, pushing domestic manufacturers to differentiate through premium formulations and export strategies.

Where Brazilian Pet Food Goes

Brazil’s pet food exports reached record territory in 2024. The top five destinations, Colombia, Uruguay, Chile, Bolivia, and the UAE, absorbed close to 77% of total export volume. During January through May 2024, Brazil shipped 33,700 metric tons of pet food to 46 countries, a 13% increase in volume over the same period in 2023.

The geographic pattern tells an important story. Latin American neighbors buy on proximity and cost competitiveness. The UAE signals something different: Middle Eastern and Asian markets are opening up for Brazilian pet food brands, driven by rising pet ownership in urbanizing economies. For manufacturers looking to grow beyond Mercosur, these emerging destinations represent the next frontier.

The USDA Foreign Agricultural Service has flagged the broader South American and Caribbean pet food market as a growth opportunity, noting that imports across the region have been climbing steadily as local production struggles to keep pace with premiumization trends.

The Raw Material Advantage

Brazilian pet food manufacturers have a cost edge that goes beyond cheap labor. It starts with raw ingredients.

Soybean meal provides the plant protein base for most dry pet food formulations. Brazil produced 169 million metric tons of soybeans in the 2024/25 season, roughly 40% of global output. Manufacturers can source soybean meal domestically at prices well below what European or Japanese competitors pay after import duties and freight.

Chicken by-products, including mechanically deboned meat, organ meats, and bone meal, form the primary animal protein in mid-range and economy pet food. Brazil produced record volumes of chicken in 2024, with production forecast to grow further in 2025 according to PoultryMed. Pet food manufacturers benefit from the same processing infrastructure that makes Brazil the world’s largest chicken exporter.

Corn serves as both a carbohydrate filler and an energy source in pet food. Brazil’s 127 million metric ton corn harvest (2024/25 USDA estimate) keeps prices competitive for feed-grade applications.

This triple advantage in protein, animal meal, and grain means a Brazilian manufacturer can produce a ton of standard dry pet food at a meaningfully lower raw material cost than a manufacturer in Germany, the UK, or the United States.

Why Traditional Sales Channels Are Losing Ground

Brazilian pet food manufacturers have historically relied on a handful of channels to reach international buyers. Most of those channels are getting more expensive and less effective.

Trade Fairs: High Cost, Uncertain Returns

The pet industry’s major trade events include Interzoo (Nuremberg, Germany), Global Pet Expo (Orlando, USA), and Pet South America (Sao Paulo). Pet South America’s 2024 edition drew around 350 exhibitors and 25,000 visitors. Interzoo 2024 attracted 37,000 trade visitors from 140 countries.

But the economics are shifting. A VerdePets survey found that 65% of exhibitors consider trade shows too expensive, and only 7% saw ROI at every show they attended. More telling: exhibitor participation is declining. In 2025, just 44% of companies plan to exhibit at 2 to 4 shows, down from 58% in 2024. A mid-size booth at Interzoo, including space, construction, staff travel, and accommodation, can run $40,000 to $120,000. For a Brazilian manufacturer dealing with BRL volatility and long-haul travel costs, each fair is a major bet. Cost per qualified lead: $300 to $900+.

Field Sales Representatives

Hiring a sales rep who understands pet nutrition, speaks the buyer’s language, and can navigate import regulations costs $80,000 to $150,000 per year in total compensation for a European or North American territory. Covering five target markets means $400,000 to $750,000 in fixed costs before generating a single order. Each rep hits a ceiling as they saturate their territory. Cost per qualified lead: $500 to $1,200+.

Distributors and Trading Houses

Pet food distributors offer access to retail chains and pet specialty stores in foreign markets, but they capture 10 to 20% margins and own the customer relationship. When a distributor finds a cheaper supplier, the manufacturer loses the account overnight. There is no direct feedback loop on product performance, no ability to cross-sell new SKUs, and no data on what end consumers actually want.

Government Trade Missions

ApexBrasil organizes international trade missions for Brazilian manufacturers, but these are infrequent, broadly targeted, and follow a one-size-fits-all format. A pet food manufacturer attending a general food industry mission alongside coffee, juice, and beef exporters gets diluted attention. The follow-up pipeline from these events is typically thin.

A Scalable Alternative for Reaching Global Buyers

The channels above share a common problem: they scale linearly. Double the fairs, double the cost. Add another rep, add another salary. The cost per lead stays flat or increases as you push into less familiar territories.

An AI-powered outbound engine works differently. It identifies procurement managers, category buyers, and importers across target markets using firmographic and trade data. It crafts personalized outreach in the buyer’s native language, referencing their specific product categories and import patterns. And it improves with every campaign cycle, as response data feeds back into targeting and messaging.

The cost structure is fundamentally different. Where trade fairs cost $300 to $900+ per qualified lead and field reps cost $500 to $1,200+, an AI outbound system operates at $150 to $300 per qualified lead, and that number decreases over time as the system learns which buyer profiles convert best.

For Brazilian pet food manufacturers already competing on raw material costs, adding a scalable buyer acquisition channel could be the difference between staying regional and going global. You can see how the engine works or explore the full growth system.

Brazil’s broader manufacturing export story follows the same pattern. We covered the wider landscape in our guide to Brazil’s manufacturing exports, and the food sector specifically in our piece on Brazilian food and meat exporters.

What Is Next for Brazilian Pet Food

The domestic market is cooling. Growth slowed to 3.5% projected for 2025, according to GlobalPETS, down from 9.6% in 2024 and 14.2% in 2023. Rising inflation and exchange rate volatility are squeezing consumer spending. Taxes account for roughly 50% of the final pet food price in Brazil, compared to about 7% in the United States, making it harder for manufacturers to pass along input cost increases.

That domestic slowdown is precisely why exports matter more now. The $580 million export record in 2024 proved Brazilian pet food can compete globally. The manufacturers who build direct relationships with international buyers, rather than depending on fairs and distributors, will capture the next wave of growth.

The pet food market in Brazil is expected to reach $9.32 billion in 2025, growing at a 7.62% CAGR through 2031, according to Mordor Intelligence. For manufacturers, the question is no longer whether to export but how to reach buyers efficiently at scale.

FAQ

How large is the Brazilian pet food export market?

Brazil’s pet sector exported $580.6 million in 2024, a 29.7% increase over 2023. Pet food and treats accounted for 86% of that total. The country shipped to 46 countries, with Colombia, Uruguay, Chile, Bolivia, and the UAE as the top five destinations.

Who are the largest pet food manufacturers in Brazil?

The top players include PremieRpet (Golden and Premier brands), BRF Pet (Biofresh, Guabi Natural, Three Dogs), Total Alimentos (ADM-owned), along with multinationals Mars and Nestle Purina. The top five companies held 28.1% combined market share in 2024.

Why is Brazil competitive in pet food manufacturing?

Brazil is the world’s largest soybean producer, largest chicken exporter, and third-largest corn producer. These three ingredients form the backbone of commercial pet food formulations. Domestic sourcing gives Brazilian manufacturers a structural raw material cost advantage over competitors in Europe or North America.

What trade fairs serve the Brazilian pet food industry?

Pet South America in Sao Paulo is the regional flagship event, drawing around 350 exhibitors. Interzoo in Nuremberg and Global Pet Expo in Orlando are the major international events. However, 65% of exhibitors now consider trade shows too expensive, and participation rates are declining year over year.

How can Brazilian pet food manufacturers reach international buyers?

Traditional channels like trade fairs ($300 to $900+ per lead) and field reps ($500 to $1,200+ per lead) scale linearly and get more expensive over time. AI-powered outbound systems offer a scalable alternative at $150 to $300 per qualified lead, with costs decreasing as the system learns buyer preferences. Learn how it works.