Pet Food Industry Case

The research analyzes the case "Cat Fight in the Pet Food Industry" Parts A and B (Harvard Business School, 1991, pp. 113; Harvard Business School, 1992, p. 1). The results of this analysis are presented in (1) an industry analysis, (2) an assessment of company positioning, and (3) a consideration of the implications of the acquisition of the AndersonClayton firm.

Porter (1980, pp. 717) considers the conditions of entry in to an industry as one of the keys to both the structure of the industry and the character of competition within the industry. Economy of scale is one of the major barriers to industry entry identified by Porter (1980, p. 7). Economy of scale was a major barrier to new entrants to the pet food industry at the time of this casethe mid1980s. Thus, competition within the industry could be expected to be directed toward product differentiation and participation in multiple lines within the industry, as opposed to the countering of potential threats from new competitors.

Porter (1980, p. 17) pointed out that rivalry among existing competitors can become intense, as each competitor attempts to improve industry position through the use of price competition, advertising, product introductions, and increased customer service. In the pet food industry in the mid1980s, price competition, advertising, and product introductions were widely used by most of the industry competitors in

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segments within each segment. Position Assessment In the context of dollar value, dog and cat food accounted for almost all sales in the pet food industry. Considering only dog and cat food, dog food had a 62.5 percent industry share, while the cat food share was 37.5 percent. Although dog food was a mature industry segment, while cat food was a growth segment, dog food was expected to retain the dominant market share. Within the dog food segment, the dry dog food subsegment had a market share of 55.3 percent, while the canned dog food subsegment had a market share of 25.6 percent, and the three remaining subsegments had a combined market share of 20.1 percent. Within the cat food segment, the canned cat food subsegment had a market share of 52 percent, while the dry cat food subsegment had a market share of 35.2 percent, and the moist cat food subsegment market share was 12.8 percent. The determination of what company is best positioned in the pet food industry is a function of the market positions of the various manufactuers in the two segments and the several subsegments of the industry. The segment and subsegment positions of the major pet food manufacturers are assessed in the discussions that follow. Seven
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Some common words found in the essay are:
Miles Snow, Ralston Purina, Quaker Oats, Position Assessment, Kal Kan, Analysis Porter, Business School, food subsegment, dog food, market share, cat food, dog food subsegment, pet food, food industry, pet food industry, AndersonClayton Porter, percent market share, cat food subsegment, percent market, food segment, ralston purina, Charles Snow, Grand Metropolitan, quaker oats, dry dog food,
Approximate Word count = 2087
Approximate Pages = 8 (250 words per page)

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