Livestock & Other Animal Food Manufacturing

Livestock & Other Animal Food Manufacturing

Brief Excerpt from Industry Overview Chapter:

Companies in this industry manufacture food for livestock including beef and dairy cattle, poultry, hogs, and other food animals, primarily from grains, proteins, vitamins, and other ingredients. Top US companies include ADM, Cargill, Land O'Lakes (which owns Purina), and Scoular; other companies include Charoen Pokphand Foods (Thailand), Nutreco (the Netherlands), New Hope Liuhe (China), and Ridley (Australia).

COMPETITIVE LANDSCAPE

Demand is driven by the livestock production industry. The profitability of individual companies depends on efficient operations. Large companies and cooperatives can benefit from economies of scale. Companies such as Cargill and ADM have their own distribution, processing, and storage facilities (silos and other farm infrastructure). Small companies can compete by meeting demand from small, specialized farming operations, such as organic cattle and poultry producers, and by providing products for hobby farmers. The industry is concentrated: the 50 largest companies account for around 70% of revenue.

PRODUCTS, OPERATIONS & TECHNOLOGY

Major products include dairy cattle feed and supplements, which account for about 20% of the industry revenue. This is followed by swine feed and supplements (10%) and beef cattle feed and supplements (10%). Other prepared animal feeds account for about 10%, while grain and mineral mixture animal feeds account for about 5%.