If you happen to’re nervous about tariffs affecting the worth of the food you buy for your cats, you aren’t alone.
A survey of pet homeowners in March 2025 revealed that 28% of pet dad and mom are nervous about with the ability to afford issues for his or her pets, and 52% are involved that tariffs will make proudly owning a pet dearer.
There is anecdotal evidence that the price of cat food is already going up as a result of new tariffs. The proprietor of a pet retailer in Colorado was just lately interviewed by Denver’s Fox 31 Information in regards to the rising price of meals and pet provides (and even the worth of procuring baggage), all of which he stated he should move on to clients. “We actually can’t even eat 10% with out going out of enterprise,” he stated.
Tariff rates seems to be changing daily, and without a working crystal ball, it is hard to know exactly what the future holds. The purpose of this blog is to just explain how the current state of tariffs could affect the price of pet food in the U.S.
A tariff is basically a tax that is applied to goods as they are imported into a country.
Governments use tariffs for a variety of reasons. Tariffs can be used to raise revenue for the government, to protect a domestic industry from foreign competition, or to even out the playing field in a situation of unfair trade practices. Tariffs can also be retaliatory, a way of punishing another country for some action.
Who pays for tariffs?
While it might seem like tariffs punish foreign producers, the reality is that consumers (that’s you) get stuck with the bill. The added expense of a tariff just gets passed down to you in the form of higher prices.
Tariffs can affect prices in indirect ways, too. If imported goods are too expensive, and domestic manufacturers can’t meet demand, tariffs create supply shortages. Shortages, in turn, cause prices to go up.
And finally, both domestic and foreign companies may be forced to pass on the increase in operating costs associated with establishing new supply chains or changing production locations. That’s in addition to the tariffs themselves.
How do tariffs impact the cost of cat food?
Most cat food sold in the United States relies on global supply chains for everything: cat food ingredients and packaging, and even the equipment used to make cat food.
Cat-food packaging is impacted by tariffs
The cans that many cat foods are available are product of a product referred to as tinplate metal, which is a skinny layer of metal coated with tin.
Tinplate metal isn’t just utilized in cat food cans – tinplate metal is utilized in packaging for human meals and different family merchandise, largely as a result of it’s very proof against corrosion.
Roughly 25.1 billion cans are manufactured every year, and most of these (83%) are cans for human and pet meals.
What is the problem with the tinplate steel market?
The problem is that the U.S. no longer manufactures enough tinplate steel, or the right kind of tinplate steel, to meet demand; it must be imported. In 2022, for example, 62% of tinplate steel was imported.
Why doesn’t the U.S. just build more factories?
You would think that U.S. manufacturers would be falling all over themselves to build tinplate steel factories here. But steel manufacturers in the U.S. have not been making capital investments in new factories for very good reasons.
Most U.S. manufacturers view the market for tinplate steel as relatively small and shrinking. Domestic manufacturers are actually closing existing mills rather than putting more money into them. Robert Budway, president of the Can Manufacturers Institute, told Fastmarkets, “It’s not a large segment to invest in.”
Cat food requires the highest quality cans
Canned cat food requires the best quality tinplate steel to prevent leaks, rust, and corrosion, which would affect food safety.
High quality tinplate steel is actually very complicated to produce. Foreign manufacturers are able to manufacture high quality tinplate steel in the variety of thicknesses and widths that the market demands.
Consequently, can manufacturers have been forced to buy their tinplate steel overseas because the quality of what is available in the United States doesn’t meet their standards.
The problem with tariffs on tinplate steel
The problem with tariffs on imported tinplate steel is that U.S. manufacturers simply can’t meet demand or produce the kind of material that can manufacturers need. All these tariffs do, aside from causing an immediate increase in food prices, is force food companies to find other packaging solutions.
But they are not going to bring more tinplate steel manufacturing back to the U.S.
Cat-food ingredients are impacted by tariffs
You may think you are buying cat food that’s produced in a single nation, when in truth, it could be produced, in entire or partly, out of the country, or in a number of different nations. In a time of rising tariffs, it issues precisely the place all of the components on your cat meals come from.
Some cat-food components are made within the USA, whereas others are imported
In accordance with the Affiliation of American Feed Management Officers (AAFCO), the non-profit group that guides authorities regulators on pet meals and labeling requirements, many pet-food components do originate in america and Canada (tariffs on Canadian imports of pet meals are quickly paused as of this writing, however could also be reinstated at any second).
Exceptions embody lamb/sheep meat, which frequently comes from New Zealand, and fish and fish meal. Fruit and tapioca are usually imported, as are nutritional vitamins, minerals, and different meals components.
That last bit is important for cat guardians. The amino acid taurine is essential for cat health and is almost exclusively sourced from China. A very small percentage of taurine also comes from Japan.
If only it were that simple…
“Made in the USA” doesn’t necessarily mean a pet food was made in the USA
The Federal Trade Commission oversees labeling for products and the term “Made in the USA” doesn’t mean that all ingredients in a pet food were grown, raised, or harvested in the United States.
“Made in the USA” only means that the processing and final assembly of the cat food happened in the U.S. The ingredients that go into this food could be sourced elsewhere, and thus subject to tariffs.
Another related phrase, “Made in America,” means that a pet food was made in any of the Americas, including Central America and South America. If a cat food was made in Mexico, it could still be labeled “Made in America” and subject to tariffs.
And, “Sourced in the USA” means that just some portion of the ingredients come from the United States. A product that says “Sourced in the USA” is likely processed and turned into cat food in another country. A tariff would be levied when the final product is imported back into the U.S. for you to buy.
And finally, just because a pet-food company has “Made in the USA” or “Made in America” on its product packaging, doesn’t necessarily mean that it’s true.
The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has regulatory authority over pet food in the United States. While the FDA performs occasional inspections of some facilities to ensure compliance with food safety laws, it does not enforce all laws, including some labeling laws.
Some cat food manufacturers use middlemen to hide where they source ingredients
Not all pet-food companies are honest about where their ingredients come from.
The website, truthaboutpetfood.com, follows the paper trail of import records for pet-food ingredients. Many import records show some unlikely importers of pet-food ingredients.
One record shared by truthaboutpetfood.com shows the bank, J.P. Morgan, importing water buffalo body parts from India. J.P. Morgan does not manufacture pet food.
So, what’s this all about? Some pet-food companies presumably employ middlemen, like J.P. Morgan, to act as the importer of record. This allows the pet-food company to hide the fact that they are importing some ingredients from China and other countries.
But this does not stop the levying of tariffs, which will ultimately be factored into the cost of buying cat food for you.
At the time of this writing, the market for cat food appears relatively stable.
This is probably due to some early stockpiling by distributors who anticipated the tariffs. One estimate is that U.S. distributors placed orders covering three to six months of supply.
But the second half of the year may be a different story, unless our government decides to withdraw some of these tariffs.
A Rover survey of 1,000 pet parents showed that 25% of pet guardians have already begun switching to more affordable pet-food brands.
34% of respondents admitted that pet spending is one of the last places that they would cut if their budget was tight, and 33% said they have already reduced spending in other categories, including groceries for themselves!
I am not advocating for cat guardians to skimp on their own groceries so their cat does not have to go without. I encourage you to change pet-food brands to something less expensive if, and when, it becomes necessary.
If you need more help than that, contact your local food pantry as many will also provide pet food, or your local shelter, as some have surplus food they can donate.
This page on Petfinder.com can help you locate cat-food resources:
Unfortunately, there aren’t any magic solutions to this terrible problem.
The main goal is to continue feeding your cat whatever cat food is available and to avoid relinquishing your cat to a shelter if at all possible. Shelters are already overfull, and only a small percentage of cats are ultimately adopted. Most are euthanized.
If you decide to try a new cat food, be sure to transition slowly to prevent gastrointestinal upset for your cat. I explain how manage the switch from one food type to another in this post (it’s about midway down the publish).
And eventually, in case you’re so inclined, name your representatives in authorities to allow them to know the way tariffs are affecting you and your loved ones.
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Daybreak LaFontaine is a lifelong animal lover who all the time appears to have slightly pet hair in her keyboard. Her weblog, Kitty Contemplations, helps cat guardians higher perceive and look after the particular beings they share their lives and houses with. Her cat-products enterprise, Cat in the Box, sells lovely, well-made, and award-winning merchandise that she designed to satisfy the organic wants of cats.
