DALLAS, Aug 27, 2006 / --- It looks like Fido and Kitty are becoming part of the new luxury that has been sweeping the America for the past two years. According to ‘Pet Food in the U.S.: Riding the Premium Wave,’ a new report from Packaged Facts, sales of premium pet foods helped boost 2005 sales of the product to $14.5 billion.

The amount might be staggering, but considering that there are more than 60 million pet dogs and nearly 70 million pet cats in the U.S., according to the U.S. Pet Ownership and Demographics Sourcebook published by the Veterinary Market Statistics, that is a lot of pet owners out there who like to pamper Fido and Kitty.

So, what do Fido and Kitty eat these days? According to Package Facts, they have been upgraded to upscale gourmet such as natural/organic, fortified/functional, weight control and life stage, specialty foods that echoes human trends.

In short, America’s fascination with gourmet food is being passed onto pets! That means the pet food today are healthier, more functional fare with increasing targeted benefits.

Pet food have become more convenient products based on new forms and package types (especially pre-portioned, single-serve, and re-sealable); and additional gourmet/luxury products, keying in to pet owners' growing proclivity to pamper their pets.

And this trend will continue, according to Package Facts. Premium pet food will continue to be a major market driver of success in the pet food market, which is projected to reach nearly $19 billion by 2010.

"The push is really on to feed pets human quality food that meets the same stringent taste, nutritional, and portion size demands that consumers are experiencing with their own food," said Don Montuori, the publisher of Packaged Facts.

"We expect this market to continue to grow at a healthy pace based on the overwhelming consumer acceptance of higher quality and higher priced pet foods," Montuori added.

Meanwhile, marketers are furthering the "pets as family" boom, spending more than $275 million in advertising, almost all of which encouraged deeper attachments with pets.

Remember the Mastercard commercial, wherein it said in the end, ‘the love of a dog, PRICELESS!’ Every dog owner responded to that ad positively, having experienced the loyalty and friendship of a dog.

So, it’s not surprising that 2006 is shaping up to be a banner year for sheer number of new product entries. During the first six months, marketers launched 175 new pet (dog and cat) food products, including extensions of existing lines, encompassing 844 SKUs, almost as many as appeared in all of 2005.

For more information about this survey, please visit: www.packagedfacts.com/pub/1190796.html or www.marketResearch.com.