President John F. Kennedy once said, “Change is the law of life, and those who look only to the past or present are certain to miss the future." To be successful, it is critical that we continuously evaluate our operations and processes while never compromising on food safety and nutrition.

This is one of the reasons why the Pet Food Institute supports H.R. 7380, the Pet Food Uniform Regulatory Reform Act of 2024 (PURR Act) legislation that will update the dog and cat food regulatory system.

The pet food industry is growing, with over two-thirds of U.S. households owning a pet and pet food sales of approximately $60 billion in 2023. Pet food manufacturers purchase nearly $7 billion in crops, livestock, and poultry products grown and raised by farmers and ranchers and use more than 8 million tons of animal – and plant-based ingredients.

The current pet food system was created more than a century ago when dogs and cats were usually seen as working farm animals. As the relationship between people and companion animals has become more intertwined, the regulatory system has not evolved to meet the challenges in today’s fast-paced, changing market environment that pet owners desire.

U.S. pet food makers want a regulatory system that meets the needs of a 21st-century, consumer-facing product. The current patchwork of state laws, regulations, and enforcement is unpredictable and inconsistent, creating long-term business uncertainty for pet food manufacturing and the inability to bring innovative pet food to market. It is critical that the pet food industry achieve regulatory uniformity and transparency for both pet food makers and the 87 million pet-owning U.S. households who depend on the food our members produce.

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We have two primary objectives that must be addressed for the continued viability and long-term sustainability of the pet food industry:

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• Removing the state-level pet food label review process, which has historically been both inconsistent and resource-intensive. Like labels for human foods, pet food labels can and should be regulated at the federal level without pre-market review.

• Codifying the current and future Association of American Feed Control Official (AAFCO) pet food ingredient definitions and current AAFCO marketing claims to eliminate state inconsistencies resulting in confusion, delays, and lawsuits.

The PURR Act will remove unnecessary, duplicative and costly impediments to nutritional science and product innovation that deter progress, and it will promote advancements in pet food nutrition and new product development. Pet owners will benefit by accessing the latest innovative and nutritious pet food for their dogs and cats. Consumers can have complete confidence in a centralized federal system that provides uniformity in pet food safety regulations and the confidence that the product they want will be available to them. 

Now is the time to modernize the process that creates inefficiencies, inconsistencies in interpretation, and barriers to nutrition innovation. A recent survey shared that pet owners are three times more likely to prefer pet food products to be regulated like human food rather than feed for livestock.

The Pet Food Institute and its members deliver the safest and highest quality nutrition and ingredient innovations for our nation’s dogs and cats, and this legislation supports our commitment to helping dogs and cats live their healthiest lives. Learn more at www.petfoodinstitute.org/mpfr.

Dana Brooks serves as the president and CEO for the Pet Food Institute (PFI). With over 30 years of experience across the food and agriculture industries, Dana is a trusted advisor in the pet food industry.