Page 20 - PET worldwide issue 01/2023

Review of the year

Photo: Tumisu, Pixabay
Crises, conflict

and emotion

For all of us, last year might have been one of the most chal-

lenging in a long time, and hopes of an easier year in 2023
are widespread. PET worldwide editor Philipp Gardemin offers
his own personal view of the situation.

The years 2020 and 2021 have cumulation of a variety of crises future energy supply, with alarm
acquired a legendary status. and problems in the pet sector bells ringing for pet food manu-
It goes without saying that the brought a fairly abrupt end to the facturers. There was even talk in
coronavirus pandemic had the boom existing up to that point. In- many places of cutting back on
global economy on tenterhooks, dustrial companies and special- production volumes.
but in those two years the pet ity retailers were faced with a
supplies sector experienced an deluge of new challenges. Huge Better than expected
upswing that would scarcely increases in the cost of raw ma- Several market players predicted
have been possible until then. terials, packaging and logistics an imminent economic downturn
Let us be honest: who expected resulted in high price rises for pet for the pet supplies sector also;
that 2022 would continue on food and accessories. The infla- yet we now know that we were
such a high? At any rate, the tion rate consequently rose to spared this. Admittedly, special-
eight weeks or so from 1 Janu- an unprecedented level in many ity retailers suffered sales losses,
ary onwards led us to believe countries. The price increases but we dare say that these were
that everything would carry on also led in turn to growing con- not solely a consequence of the
in a similarly positive vein. sumer reticence. As if that wasn’t political and economic condi-
With the outbreak of the war in enough, concerns grew in the tions. On the contrary, it was
Ukraine on 24 February, the ac- course of the year regarding the also due to the fact that many

20 PET worldwide 1|2023

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