A fast-growing market with new expectations
The Pet Care market continues to grow steadily, driven by rising demand for higher-quality grooming, skin and coat care, and hygiene products for dogs and cats. Premiumisation, e-commerce and increased attention to animal well-being are reshaping the category, with consumers expecting products that deliver visible results while remaining safe and gentle.
Inspired by the cosmetics industry, brands are increasingly applying beauty-grade concepts to Pet Care. However, animals present specific physiological and behavioural characteristics that require dedicated scientific and regulatory approaches. Safety, tolerance and performance must therefore be demonstrated through tailored evaluation strategies rather than direct transposition from human cosmetics.
Pet Care products: a distinct regulatory framework
Pet Care hygiene and grooming products are not classified as cosmetics, as EU cosmetic legislation applies exclusively to products intended for human use. Instead, they fall mainly under horizontal EU legislation, notably the General Product Safety Regulation (EU) 2023/988, which requires that only safe products be placed on the market.
Manufacturers must demonstrate safety for both the animals and humans exposed during use, including pet owners and professional groomers. In addition, REACH and CLP regulations apply to chemical substances and mixtures, defining substance restrictions, hazard classification and labelling. Depending on claims and formulation, products may be reclassified as biocides or veterinary medicines, making early regulatory assessment essential.
Ensuring safety for the human user
Although intended for animals, Pet Care products involve regular human handling, sometimes repeated or occupational, particularly in grooming settings. Ensuring user safety is therefore a critical component of product development.
Safety assessment approaches are largely inspired by cosmetics and consumer product testing. They include ingredient toxicological review, exposure scenario analysis, and in vitro tests for skin irritation, eye irritation and skin sensitization. For spray products, inhalation exposure must also be considered. These evaluations help protect both household users and professionals while supporting compliance with product safety requirements.
Demonstrating safety and efficacy in animals
Beyond human safety, Pet Care products must demonstrate good tolerance and efficacy in the target animal species. This remains complex due to the wide variability between dogs and cats, including breed, size, coat type, skin sensitivity and grooming behaviors such as licking, which may lead to oral exposure.
As a result, studies rely on complementary approaches combining species-appropriate formulation safety assessment; in-use tolerance studies conducted under veterinary supervision; efficacy evaluation through clinical scoring of skin and coat condition; objective measurements where feasible; animal welfare questionnaires; and home-use tests, enabling evaluation under real-life conditions with feedback from pet owners.
Extending expertise to animal supplements
In parallel, the market for animal dietary supplements is expanding rapidly. These products fall under feed legislation, with specific regulatory and analytical requirements related to composition, safety and claim substantiation.
Strong regulatory expertise combined with analytical control is essential, including nutrient content verification, contaminant screening, stability studies and batch-to-batch consistency, all contributing to product safety and long-term credibility.
Conclusion
As the Pet Care market continues to professionalize, brands must address a dual responsibility: ensuring safety and efficacy for animals while protecting human users. Scientific rigor, regulatory expertise and adapted evaluation methods are key to building trust in this evolving category.
Leveraging its expertise in safety assessment, testing, clinical evaluation and regulatory support, Eurofins Cosmetics & Personal Care helps its partners develop safe, effective and compliant Pet Care products, supporting success in a market where animal welfare and human safety go hand in hand.
