The pet food industry appears to be split into adopting artificial intelligence, and many companies still assess how these emerging technologies will change operations. A recent poll conducted at PetFoodIndustry.com identifies key barriers that hinder wider implementation, while examining how pet food experts are currently using AI across product development, formulation, production and marketing. A two-week survey revealed significant fluctuations in both AI adoption rates and perceptions of future investment priorities.
Current AI usage varies greatly from company to company
The findings show that AI implementations have roughly divided the industry into central areas. Of the respondents, 36% reported active AI use, nearly 16% deployed technology in multiple operational areas, and 21% focused on one or two specific applications. However, the majority of the industry has not yet adopted AI. Currently, 26% of companies do not use AI tools, so 26% are uncertain about AI status or have no opinions on technology.
12% of respondents have shown that they are valuing AI tools but have not yet moved to implementation, suggesting that adoption numbers could increase in the coming months as these companies complete the assessment process.
Expertise gaps top list of adoption barriers
When asked about the biggest obstacles hindering AI adoption, respondents identified lack of expertise as the main challenge, with nearly 25% citing technical knowledge and staff as the main barrier. This skill gap far outweighed other concerns in the survey.
Other major barrier categories are categorized as “other” responses (27%), indicating that many companies face challenges that are not captured by standard survey options. Among the specific barriers, outdated systems and legacy workflows present obstacles to 15% of respondents, while 17% believe that the need for AI is not recognized, and that the current process will function properly without technology enhancements.
Data quality issues affect nearly 10% of companies and prevent them from moving forward with AI applications, but cost concerns and unclear return on investment represent a barrier of just 7% of respondents.
Marketing applications lead the investment priorities of AI
Despite the varying adoption rates, companies show a clear preference for where AI can bring the most value. Marketing and sales applications dominate future AI investment priorities, with 35% of respondents identifying customer targeting and campaign optimization as areas that will benefit most from AI implementation.
Market insights, including consumer trends and competitive analysis, ranked second at 21%, followed by 18% improvements in production efficiency focused on manufacturing optimization and quality control. Both product formulation applications such as recipe optimization and ingredient replacements, and regulatory compliance processes tied to lowest priority at 13% each.
The emphasis on marketing and sales suggests that pet food companies view AI as a tool to better understand and reach consumers, rather than optimizing internal operations and product development processes.
Research Methods: Data collected from August 7-21, 2025, from 139 pet food industry experts via the PetFoodIndustry.com polling platform.
