Growth prospects bright for companies this year

The pet food market witnessed sluggish growth in China last year, due to the frugal consumption environment, industry analysts said.

Pet food still remains a very small, but a primary, segment in the nation's fast-moving consumer goods market. About 7.5 percent of Chinese families buy pet food, while 20 percent of the urban families own pets, according to statistics from global market consultancy Kantar Worldpanel.

Growth rates in the pet food segment slowed during 2014 and were a tad lower than the 10 percent growth seen in 2013, said Jason Yu, general manager of Kantar Worldpanel, however, the lower growth rate did not affect consumers who had already formed purchasing habits. Consumers who had occasionally bought pet food might have had second thoughts while shopping, said Yu.