Pet Food Testing Moves From the Kennel and Into the Home  

Kennel-based pet food testing may have been an industry standard for decades, but Netherlands-based startup Pet Panel is making the case for why that needs to change.
 

It argues that while the approach produces reliable results, these do not necessarily translate to real-world conditions. 
 

Founded two years ago by Evelien Bos, a research associate in animal nutrition at Wageningen University & Research (WUR), Pet Panel offers independent in-home trials designed to generate more representative data for pet food producers and ingredient suppliers.

Kennel-based testing: 'Precise but not accurate'

The central issue with kennel-based testing, according to Bos, is that the animals used are experienced testers. 
 

To demonstrate the point, she explained that in a two-bowl preference test (where a pet chooses between two products), kennel animals perform reliably because they are tested routinely. 
 

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However, they do not represent the broader population of pets that will eventually eat the product.
 

'In a kennel, you can have a very precise measurement, but it does not reflect the real-life situation,' Bos told Fi Global Insights. 'I always say it is precise but not accurate.'

Kennel-based testing fails to capture pet–owner interactions

Bos pointed to one customer who spent €200,000 on kennel-based testing, only to find that a subsequent in-home trial produced a different conclusion. The kennel data failed to predict how the product would perform with everyday pets and their owners, she explained.
 

Owner behaviour is a variable that kennel testing cannot capture. In Pet Panel's trials, owner feedback has revealed cases where a pet readily consumed a product, but the owner found it unpleasant and would therefore be unlikely to repurchase it.
 

"In the end, an animal can think something, but if the owner does not agree, it will not be bought again," said Bos.
 

Alongside data quality is a growing ethical dimension. Bos said kennel-based testing is increasingly difficult to reconcile with the humanisation, premiumisation, and transparency expectations that now define the pet food market. 
 

How a product is tested, she argued, is part of that story too.

Blind trials and a 20-animal threshold

Pet Panel conducts two types of palatability tests: a one-bowl acceptance test (yes or no) and a two-bowl preference test (A or B). 
 

All trials are blinded, which means pet owners do not know the brand, composition, or ingredients of the products they receive.
 

For digestibility testing, the company adds an indigestible marker to the test food and measures its concentration in both the food and faeces, allowing digestibility values to be calculated without total collection of intake and output (a practical requirement in an uncontrolled home setting).
 

Modelling from Bos's doctoral research at WUR informed Pet Panel's standard of 20 animals as its minimum sample size for reliable outcomes. She explained that precision significantly improved between five and 20 animals, but flattened beyond that point. 
 

The same research found that shorter test periods can produce more representative results: day one palatability data predicted day 10 outcomes, because pets that disliked a product dropped out over time, progressively skewing the remaining measurements.
 

Pet owners join the panel voluntarily, receive test products free of charge, and can opt in or out of individual trials.
 

'We test a lot of different products, so people don't have to participate in every test,' she said. 
 

'Every week we send out [correspondence saying]: 'We have these tests this week, who wants to participate?' And if they say 'it's not a good time this week', they can skip. 
 

'Some people only participate in snack tests. They don't want to change the daily foods, but they would love to have a snack test.' 
 

Independent data for pet food ingredient suppliers

Pet food ingredient suppliers are among Pet Panel's most active customer segments. 
 

With a growing range of ingredients entering pet food, such as freeze-dried functional yoghurt, chitosan, and even black soldier fly larvae protein, Bos said a supplier looking to sell a novel ingredient to a producer needs more than published literature to support its case.
 

She explained that suppliers need independent, real-world evidence that the ingredients in their formulations are palatable, support digestibility, or deliver a measurable health benefit in the animal.
 

'They need data to back up their sales and their communication,' she said. 'If they want to sell their ingredients to a pet food producer, they need a story.'
 

Pet Panel operates from its own facility in Wageningen, which includes a logistics centre, laboratory, and offices. Bos said that as of March 2026, the company employs 17 people. 
 

Long-term plans include international expansion. Currently, participants and panellists are sourced from the Netherlands and Belgium. 
 

Pet Panel is also planning to move beyond its two core testing pillars (digestibility and palatability) into health-focused trials covering gut health, skin and coat, mobility, dental health, and urinary health, which would open a new testing route for functional ingredient and nutraceutical suppliers seeking efficacy data in companion animals. 
 

With alternative formats and novel ingredients like insect-based feeds, plant-based formulations, and even functional drinks for dogs reaching Pet Panel's testing pipeline, Bos said the priority now is building the evidence base for health-focused ingredient claims.

By Tessa Wiles
Source: FI Global Insights