Are powdered peptides beneficial to pet health?

Following the COVID-19 pandemic, pet ownership is at all-time high, with an estimated 90 million households in the European Union now owning a pet according to FEDIAF. While the crisis reinforced the multiple benefits of pet ownership, it also highlighted the importance that consumers and pet food manufacturers play in ensuring that pets receive the care they need to thrive.¹

When it comes to the food we feed our pets, we are seeing growing awareness around the development and provision of health-focused, nutritious, and palatable pet food ingredients, both from a consumer and brand owner perspective. The ability to formulate and supply pet foods and snacks with a functional or preventative care positioning is no longer a unique selling point, but an expectation – especially when it comes to products that can make claims to prevent disease, slow cognitive decline and ensure overall health and wellness.

With premium petfood well established, we are seeing the category evolve further to include human grade and science-backed ingredients and formulations. These products are often referred to as super premium ingredients, emphasising solutions that offer excellent nutrient bioavailability particularly when it comes to pet microbiome and gut health.²

Super ingredient solutions

When pet owners think about premium and super premium ingredients, they usually refer to products that do not contain any artificial colours and flavours or bonemeal.³ As the category evolves, we are seeing an upswing in the development and use of marine assets and plant-based product solutions. Both these categories are holding their own, but marine assets in particular can offer a high percentage of quality proteins, fats, vitamins and minerals, coupled to stable and bioavailable antioxidants.

For brand owners wanting to stay on top of the growth curve, it is essential to use the best quality ingredients when developing and formulating new products. This will not only cater to pet owners’ desire for health-focused pet food products and ingredients, but tie in with their specific feeding aspirations and requirements.⁴

According to the latest available data from analytics firm GfK, more than 4,500 new pet food products were introduced in 2017 alone, an increase of 45% on the year before.⁵ Additionally, Euromonitor forecasts that the worldwide pet nutrition market will grow at an average 4.3% CAGR through 2026. The firm states that the global market has increased steadily, reaching $123bn in sales in 2022, a 3.3% increase from 2021, with sales expected to achieve $146bn by 2026.⁶

Salmigo^® Active

Powdered peptides have long been a favourite product for use in the development of pet food and snacks due to their superb nutritional benefits. These ingredients can improve the solubility and bioavailability of low solubility compounds, improve performance and stability, and allow for continuous processing and scale up during manufacturing.⁷ They are also easy to incorporate into petfood formulations.⁸

At biomega^®, our Salmigo^®Active consists of approximately 70% protein, along with other valuable micronutrients such as marine n-3 fatty acids, vitamins, minerals, and trace elements. Due to the way our peptide is processed through continuous enzymatic hydrolysis, the nutrient content remains intact, making it highly digestible and an easily absorbed nutritional source of protein with a high biological value.

Upcycled from salmon raw material side streams, our Salmigo^® Active enables pet food manufacturers to develop the best in nutritious petfood and snacks by making use of natural raw materials without the use of bulking or binding agents. This means a purer product without artificially enhancing the appearance, texture, or flavour – but with the nutritional punch today’s pet owners require as part of a great tasting product.

For more information on how we can assist you to make Salmigo^® Active part of your new product development for premium and super premium petfood and snacks, why not contact our team now? Simply email us at contact@biomegagroup.com

References: