Beyond Flavor: The Role of Palatability in Pet Food Development

In pet food development and marketing, palatability plays a pivotal role, significantly impacting both animal well-being and owner satisfaction. As the pet food industry evolves, understanding palatability becomes increasingly crucial for manufacturers seeking to create products that appeal to both pets and their owners. 

What is Palatability?

Palatability is the combination of physical and chemical properties that influence a pet's willingness to eat a particular food^1,3. It is defined by measuring a pet’s intake and preference for one food over another, commonly determined via one- or two-bowl palatability tests performed in trained animal panels^1-3. During product development, palatability is a key factor that serves multiple purposes. It is the goal when creating new items, the focus for enhancing existing products, and the benchmark for assessing production methods and ingredient choices in quality control².

Palatants are often either animal- or plant-based hydrolysates available as liquids or powders. These complex mixtures are created by breaking down animal or plant tissues and are sometimes supplemented with compounds that act as precursors to flavors and other substances known to improve taste appeal to enhance their flavor-boosting properties³. Palatants can be applied internally in the base product mixture or coated externally in various formats, from dry kibble to soft, chewy treats.

Challenges in Ensuring Palatability

Despite pet food companies utilizing palatants to increase palatability, several confounding factors may prevent Fido from running to his bowl at dinner time. The nutrient content of the diet or external factors like a dog’s breed, weight, and the time of year can decrease food intake⁴. Certain diseases may cause a decrease in appetite, further expounding the issue of low food intake for pets. 

Unlike human food products, where sensory analysis can be directly communicated, understanding palatability can be challenging. Because of this, pet owners often observe their pets before, during, and after meals to ascertain if they enjoy their diets. Key behaviors, such as excitement during meal preparation, low latency between the bowl being offered and the moment the pet starts eating, and the speed of consumption indicate that their pet enjoys their food ³.

Why is Palatability Important?

Palatability plays a multifaceted role in ensuring that pets and their people are satisfied with their pet food and treat choices. At the highest level, palatable food encourages consumption of the diet, adequately meeting Fido’s nutritional requirements. If a pet refuses to eat sufficiently due to low palatability, over time, it can miss out on essential nutrients, potentially leading to health issues. Thus, accurately assessing palatability is crucial to ensure adequate nutrient intake³.

Furthermore, and arguably most importantly, pet owners are more satisfied when their pets readily eat their food, reducing stress and concern over feeding. If Fido shows interest in his bowl and licks it clean every time, his owner feels like they’ve done their job in not only supplying Fido’s needed nutrition but in providing an enjoyable mealtime experience. Even with treats, pet owners feel a bonding experience when providing their pet with a highly palatable snack. The pet food market offers a vast array of options through various retail channels, including supermarkets, specialty pet shops, veterinary clinics, and online platforms. This diversity allows pet owners to be highly discerning in their choice of dry pet food.

Consequently, manufacturers place significant importance on how owners perceive their products' appeal to pets, recognizing this as a crucial factor influencing purchasing decisions with the research to back it up³. For example, in a survey of over 2000 pet owners, taste was ranked as the 5th most important factor in choosing pet food⁵. Additionally, a survey of 100 dog owners concluded that owners are more likely to believe their dog will like a certain food if the owner likes the food⁶. Pet owners place high importance on their pet’s enjoyment of its diet.

For this reason, palatability directly influences pet owners' likelihood of repeat purchases. Pet owners need to be certain that their animal companions genuinely enjoy their food. If not, they're likely to switch to a different product for future purchases². In the competitive pet food market, palatability can determine a product's success or failure. To secure repeat purchases, pet food producers must make their products appealing to pets and to their owners.

What Can Brands Do to Ensure Palatability?

Optimizing palatability requires a comprehensive approach that addresses the full formulation and manufacturing process, not just a great palatant system (although that never hurts!). Not only does poor palatability have implications for pets and their owners, but it will surely hurt a brand’s wallet when consumers fail to repurchase their products. To ensure their products maximize palatability, pet food brands should consider the following strategies:

• Ingredient and Process Optimization: Managing palatability requires an optimal blend of quality ingredients, including a palatant system designed with the product in mind, coupled with contributing process parameters. The formulation of the diet must balance nutritional needs with sensory appeal, while optimal equipment ensures a homogenous and effective application of palatant systems³.
• Consider Post-Ingestion Effects: The perceived palatability of food is not only influenced by its sensory characteristics but also by its post-ingestion effects. This can sometimes override the initial sensory appeal, making it crucial to consider these effects during formulation³. Digestibility studies, either at a research facility or utilizing BSM Partners’ in-home panel, can provide valuable information on the palatability potential of a product.
• Collaborate with Experts: BSM Partners' pet industry professionals have over 400 years of collective experience in all aspects of pet product development needed to maximize palatability, from proper equipment selection to ingredient quality evaluation to formulation with nutritional and sensory needs in mind. Our palatability experts offer the most efficient solution for evaluating and improving dog and cat product palatability, keeping pets and their owners pleased to defend and expand a brand’s share of the market.

Palatability is a cornerstone of pet food success, influencing not only pets' health and satisfaction but also the products' commercial viability. By understanding the complexities of palatability and implementing strategies to optimize it, pet food brands can ensure their products are both nutritious and appealing to pets and their owners.

References

1. Watson PE, Thomas DG, Bermingham EN, Schreurs NM, Parker ME. 2023. Drivers of Palatability for Cats and Dogs—What it means for pet food development. Animals. 13(7):1134. doi:10.3390/ani13071134. https://doi.org/10.3390/ani13071134.

2. Aldrich G, Koppel K. 2015. Pet Food Palatability Evaluation: A Review of Standard Assay Techniques and Interpretation of Results with a Primary Focus on Limitations. Animals. 5(1):43–55. doi:10.3390/ani5010043. https://doi.org/10.3390/ani5010043.

3. Guillas GL, Vanacker P, Salles C, Labouré H. 2024. Insights to study, understand and manage extruded dry pet food palatability. Animals. 14(7):1095. doi:10.3390/ani14071095. https://doi.org/10.3390/ani14071095.

4. Alegría-Morán RA, Guzmán-Pino SA, Egaña JI, Muñoz C, Figueroa J. 2019. Food Preferences in dogs: Effect of dietary composition and intrinsic variables on diet selection. Animals. 9(5):219. doi:10.3390/ani9050219. https://doi.org/10.3390/ani9050219.

5. Schleicher M, Cash SB, Freeman LM. 2019. Determinants of pet food purchasing decisions. PubMed. 60(6):644–650. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/31156266.

6. Di Donfrancesco B, Koppel K, Swaney-Stueve M, Chambers E. 2014. Consumer acceptance of dry dog food variations. Animals. 4(2):313–330. doi:10.3390/ani4020313. https://doi.org/10.3390/ani4020313.

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About the Author

Neeley Bowden is a Manager of Special Services on the BSM Partners Product Innovation team. She earned her bachelor's degree in pet food production and is pursuing her master's in food science. In her early career, she worked in product innovation of pet food ingredients, focusing on the development of palatability enhancers. Bowden calls her horse farm in South Carolina home, along with her faithful canine, Allie.