The European pet food market exceeds €20 billion annually. Spanish, French and German people spend on food for their dogs and cats an amount comparable to what they spend on some foods for themselves. And yet, the democratic origin of pet food ingredients is rarely taken into account.
Where does the protein in your pet food come from? What country produces the fish meal that appears in the first ingredients on the label? This article analyses the main pet food manufacturers on the European market and the democratic map of their key ingredients.
Royal Canin: French, but with a global supply chain
Royal Canin is a subsidiary of Mars Inc (US, EIU 7.85) that manufactures in France (Aimargues, Gard) and other countries, including Australia (EIU 8.96), Russia (EIU 2.22, suspended since 2022) and China (EIU 2.12). Pet foods sold in Europe are manufactured predominantly at Mars's French and European plants.
Mars publishes a supply chain sustainability report but with limited granularity by product and ingredient. Animal protein in European Royal Canin pet foods (chicken, salmon, lamb) comes mainly from European suppliers. Fish meal can come from Norway or Asian countries depending on the batch and the reference.
EIU 2025 — Key countries in pet food ingredients: Norway 9.81 ✓ (premium fish meal, salmon) · Iceland 9.58 ✓ · Netherlands 8.88 ✓ (ingredient processing) · Germany 8.58 ✓ · France 7.99 ✓ · US 7.85 ✓ · Argentina 7.15 ✓ (soy) · Brazil 6.94 ✓ · Thailand 4.32 ✗ (cheap chicken/shrimp protein) · Vietnam 2.94 ✗ · China 2.12 ✗.
Hill's Science Plan: the most transparent
Hill's Pet Nutrition is a subsidiary of Colgate-Palmolive (US, EIU 7.85). Its production plants for Europe are in the Netherlands (EIU 8.88) and the US. Hill's publishes ingredients with specific rather than generic names ('chicken' rather than 'animal protein'), which makes democratic analysis easier.
Hill's Science Plan and Hill's Prescription Diet use chicken and salmon as primary proteins for the European market. The salmon meal in its fish references comes from Norwegian (EIU 9.81) or Icelandic (EIU 9.58) suppliers, according to available documentation. Democratic profile: good for references with specifically declared animal protein.
Orijen and Acana: Canadian with declared origin
Orijen and Acana are brands of Champion Petfoods (Alberta, Canada, EIU 8.71). They are the pet foods with the greatest declared origin traceability on the market: they label the percentage of local Alberta ingredients, and specify suppliers of Icelandic fish, North Atlantic herring, Saskatchewan duck.
The Orijen/Acana labelling is the closest to the democratic traceability standard on the pet food market. Its ingredients are 100% from high-EIU countries (Canada 8.71, US 7.85, Iceland 9.58, Netherlands 8.88). The price is premium, but consistent with the declared traceability.
The problem with soy and cheap fish meal
Soy is the most questionable ingredient in low-cost pet foods. The world's main soy producers are Brazil (EIU 6.94, acceptable), the US (7.85, acceptable) and Argentina (EIU 7.15, acceptable). But soy is also processed in China (EIU 2.12), and soy protein concentrates may have Chinese origin even if the base soy is American or South American.
Low-cost fish meal for pet food comes mainly from Peru (EIU 5.90, hybrid — below threshold), Chile (EIU 8.13, acceptable), Vietnam (EIU 2.94, authoritarian) and China (2.12). Premium Norwegian or Icelandic fish meal has a much higher price. In low-end pet foods, fish meal is probably of non-democratic origin.
Independent European brands with a good profile
There are several independent European brands with good origin traceability: Grau (Germany, EIU 8.58) uses proteins from certified German and European suppliers; Forthglade (Devon, UK, EIU 8.28) uses meat from farms in southwest England; Beco (UK) publishes its supply chain policy with supplier names. They are more expensive than the major brands, but with greater origin transparency.
In conclusion: for pet food, the key questions are the country of manufacture (France, Netherlands, Germany and Canada are benchmarks), the origin of specifically declared animal protein (Norwegian/Icelandic for fish) and whether the soy is of American or South American origin vs processed in China. Orijen/Acana are the gold standard in traceability. Royal Canin and Hill's have a good profile for their European references.
