North America specialty animal feed additives market size is slated to witness notable growth in the near future. Feed additives are added to animal and livestock feed to provide additional nutrients such as vitamins, minerals, fatty acids and amino acids. These additives play a critical role in animal nutrition as livestock producers explore natural and sustainable ways to improve performance, optimize feed conversion, enhance gut health, and reduce the use of or replace antibiotic growth promotors.

Based on products, the market is segmented into sulfate based minerals, encapsulated methionine, tribasic copper chloride, chromium propionate, DCAD products, and hydroxy vitamin D. Chromium propionate product segment is expected to grow at a CAGR of 3.7% through 2026. This can be attributed to rapid adoption of inorganic trace minerals in the feed industry.

Chromium propionate is widely used as an specialty feed supplement. The addition of chromium to animal feed containing a balanced proportion of dietary energy results into a considerable improvement in animal growth performance in relation to the level of dietary energy or enhanced meat quality. In 2018, the Canadian Food Inspection Agency (CFIA) had expanded the authorized use of chromium propionate-based animal feed products for additional animal species.

In recent years, the demand for less toxic copper sources in animal feed additives has increased. As a result, tribasic copper chloride is anticipated to witness a significant demand in the forthcoming years. On the other hand, DCAD products held about 1.72% of specialty animal feed additives market share in North America in 2019, and the demand expected to grow notably during the forecast period.

On the basis of livestock, North America specialty feed additives industry is classified into pork/swine, poultry, cattle, aquaculture, and pets. Pork/swine segment is estimated to record a CAGR of 3.7% during through 2026. Mounting concerns pertaining to safety and quality of meat and meat products due to several disease outbreaks in livestock over the past decade are driving the segment growth.

The pets segment is estimated to witness healthy growth over the next few years. This can be mainly associated with a significant rise in adoption of pets, particularly in urban regions. According to the 2019-2020 National Pet Owners Survey held by the America Pet Products Association (APPA), 67% of U.S. households own a pet. Growing preference of pet owners towards ensuring a nutritionally-rich diet will undeniably boost the production of specialty animal feed additives in the region.