Henan’s Luohe Emerges as China’s Pet Food Export Hub With RMB 2.2 Billion Industrial Park in 2026
Executive Summary: Luohe city’s Zhaoling district in Henan province has built a pet food industrial park generating RMB 2.2 billion in annual output by 2025, up from RMB 60 million in 2021, as reported by Chinese state media in September 2026. The park’s anchor tenant, Zhongyu Pet Food (中誉宠食), exports to 45 countries, operates the first overseas Chinese pet food factory in Oman, and has developed proprietary fresh-meat baking and freeze-drying technologies that company leadership says surpass international competitors. The cluster includes 17 projects across 731 acres, producing over 1,000 pet food varieties.
Key Facts
- Company
- Zhongyu Pet Food (中誉宠食, Luohe)
- Country
- China (Henan province, Luohe city)
- Industry
- Pet food manufacturing / industrial clustering
- Category
- Pet food (main meals, treats, supplements, prescription diets)
- Event
- Zhaoling pet food park reaches RMB 2.2B output; Zhongyu opens Oman factory
- Date
- 2026-09-11 (media tour report)
- Location
- Luohe, Henan, China
- Source
- China Industrial News / Daily Economic News / Tencent News
What Happened
In September 2026, Chinese state media conducted a “Vitality China Research Tour” of the Zhaoling district pet food industrial park in Luohe, Henan. The park has grown from RMB 60 million in output in 2021 to RMB 2.2 billion in 2025 — a 36x increase in five years — becoming Henan province’s largest pet food industry cluster. The park spans 731 acres with 17 aggregated projects producing over 1,000 pet food varieties including main meals, treats, supplements, and cat litter. Products are exported to 45 countries and regions. The park has been designated one of China’s top ten “Pet-Friendly Demonstration Districts.”
Background
Zhongyu Pet Food (中誉宠物食品漯河有限公司) is the park’s anchor tenant and a national-level high-tech enterprise. Chairman An Zhongping leads a 40-person R&D team partnered with the Central Plains Food Laboratory and China Agricultural University. The company has pioneered fresh-meat baking technology — using raw meat directly in production lines rather than meat meal — which An says is an industry first. The company also produces freeze-dried main meals, prescription diets (launched January 2026), and functional foods incorporating traditional Chinese ingredients like hawthorn and poria. Over 100 cats serve as in-house palatability testers. The Luohe location provides a unique supply-chain advantage: fresh chicken from the neighboring Shuanghui (Smithfield/WH Group) plant arrives as 0-4 degree Celsius meat paste within 10 minutes, entering production within two hours of initial processing.
Industry Context
The Luohe cluster represents a structural shift in China’s pet food manufacturing. China’s 7 listed pet companies posted H1 2026 revenue of RMB 11.386 billion (+15.15% YoY) but net profit collapsed 46.75% — a sector-wide margin squeeze driven by marketing costs, currency losses, and raw material inflation. Five of seven listed companies derive over 50% of revenue from OEM exports. Against this backdrop, Zhongyu’s strategy of moving upmarket into proprietary fresh-meat baking and prescription diet technology — rather than competing on volume in the OEM export segment — represents a differentiation path. The company’s overseas factory in Oman, located in a bonded port zone on the Belt and Road shipping lane, targets Middle East, Southeast Asian, and European markets, signaling Chinese pet food companies’ transition from export-by-OEM to international direct manufacturing.
Market & Business Impact
Zhongyu’s total annual output value is projected at “over RMB 1 billion” for the Luohe factory in 2026, with the broader park generating RMB 2.2 billion. Export accounts for approximately one-third of revenue. A Canadian pet food company with 70 years of history has partnered with Zhongyu for over a decade; after visiting the Luohe facility, the Canadian partner’s third-generation family leader decided to transfer its China market supply chain to Zhongyu and invited Zhongyu to co-invest in a Canadian factory. The Luohe government’s Pet Industry Development Service Center provides “one-stop” administrative support, including a logistics cost intervention that reduced per-kilogram shipping costs by RMB 0.6. The prescription diet line, targeting chronic disease management, post-surgical recovery, and special-condition feeding, launched in January 2026 with one prescription cat food product achieving 140% monthly sales growth.
Companies & Brands Involved
Zhongyu Pet Food (中誉宠食) is the flagship company, operating flagship Luohe (comprehensive), Heze (wet food), and Weifang (treats) factories. The company has partnered with a 70-year-old Canadian pet food company for supply chain manufacturing and potential co-investment in a Canadian facility. The Oman factory serves Middle East, Southeast Asian, and European export markets. The Zhaoling district government operates the Pet Industry Development Service Center. The Central Plains Food Laboratory provides joint R&D through a collaborative innovation center. The broader park hosts 17 projects and four national-level high-tech enterprises.
Data & Evidence
Park output: RMB 60M (2021) → RMB 2.2B (2025), 36x growth in five years. Park size: 731 acres, 17 projects, 1,000+ product varieties. Export reach: 45 countries. Zhongyu Luohe factory annual revenue: ~RMB 1B+. R&D investment: 5% of revenue. In-house testing: 100+ cats. Oman factory: Belt and Road bonded port zone. Prescription diet: launched January 2026, one product +140% monthly sales growth. Sources: China Industrial News, Daily Economic News, Tencent News, Sohu — all September 11-13, 2026.
What This Means for the Pet Industry
The Luohe cluster is proof that China’s pet food manufacturing is moving from low-cost OEM export to technology-led differentiation. Zhongyu’s fresh-meat baking process, prescription diet line, and Oman overseas factory represent three concurrent strategic shifts: product innovation (proprietary technology), category upgrade (from treats to prescription foods), and geographic expansion (international direct manufacturing). For international pet food brands sourcing from China, this means suppliers are becoming competitors — Chinese manufacturers with proprietary technology and global factory footprints can build their own branded presence in target markets. GPI tracks Luohe as a benchmark for Chinese provincial pet food industrial clustering policy.
Key Takeaways
- Luohe’s Zhaoling district pet food industrial park grew from RMB 60 million in 2021 to RMB 2.2 billion in 2025, a 36x increase, becoming Henan’s largest pet food cluster with products exported to 45 countries.
- Zhongyu Pet Food developed proprietary fresh-meat baking and freeze-drying technologies, launched prescription diet lines in January 2026, and opened a factory in Oman to serve Middle East and Southeast Asian markets.
- A 70-year-old Canadian pet food company transferred its China market supply chain to Zhongyu after factory visits, and invited the Chinese manufacturer to co-invest in a Canadian facility — a reversal of the historical technology transfer direction.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the Luohe pet food industrial park?
It is a 731-acre pet food manufacturing cluster in Zhaoling district, Luohe, Henan, housing 17 projects that produce over 1,000 pet food varieties exported to 45 countries, with annual output reaching RMB 2.2 billion in 2025.
Who is Zhongyu Pet Food?
Zhongyu Pet Food (中誉宠食) is a national-level high-tech enterprise and the park’s anchor tenant, with annual output exceeding RMB 1 billion from its Luohe factory, exporting to 45 countries and operating China’s first overseas pet food factory in Oman.
What technology did Zhongyu develop?
Zhongyu pioneered fresh-meat baking technology that uses raw meat directly in production lines rather than meat meal, plus freeze-dried main meals and prescription diets for chronic disease management and post-surgical recovery.
Why did a Canadian pet food company partner with Zhongyu?
After visiting Zhongyu’s Luohe facility, the Canadian partner’s third-generation family leader observed that several Zhongyu products and processes surpassed their own, prompting transfer of China market supply to Zhongyu and an invitation to co-invest in a Canadian factory.
Sources
- Primary — China Industrial News (中国工业新闻网), “Cat Colleagues Quality-Control Pet Food Selling RMB 1B Annually,” September 13, 2026, https://www.cinn.cn/yc/2026/09-13/K18xQ7w1.html
- Secondary — Daily Economic News via NetEase, “Pet Food Becomes Henan’s New Specialty,” September 12, 2026, https://www.163.com/dy/article/L6KH1HGN0512B07B.html
- Secondary — Tencent News, “Pet Food Becomes Henan’s New Specialty: How Luohe Made Pet Economy a Growth Curve,” September 13, 2026, https://news.qq.com/rain/a/20260913A041A400
