Weifang, the Shandong city whose factories ship roughly one third of China’s pet food exports, ran its first large-scale pet supply chain sourcing conference on October 16-18, 2026, at the Weifang Jinbao International Convention and Exhibition Center. The event gathered more than 200 companies and brands and was built around buyer-supplier matchmaking rather than product display, a format the city has lacked even as its export volumes grew.
Pet supply chain solutions on one exhibition floor
Exhibits ran the length of the production chain. Upstream stands covered oils, proteins and feed additives; midstream and downstream stands covered pet food, medicine, supplies, supplements, grooming and veterinary products, and smart devices. Domestic manufacturers such as Shouguang Lusi, Linyi Shuaike, Tai’an Taichong, Guotai Min’an and Baolailai shared floor space with brands including Mars, RedDog, MG, Xianlang and Biruiji.
For overseas buyers, the setup works like a physical pet food wholesale supplier marketplace. An importer working through a Pet Food manufacturer directory, or shortlisting pet products manufacturer candidates, or comparing freeze dried Pet Food manufacturer companies before a factory audit, could meet dozens of them in one trip instead of flying between sites. Cat Food distributor buyers from second-tier cities were among the target audience, according to the organisers, alongside cross-border trade service firms.
What happened at the venue
The conference split its programme in two. A B2B track ran dedicated matchmaking sessions, industry forums and a finance service zone where six banks and one pet insurer staffed on-site counters for small and mid-sized pet companies seeking credit. A public track opened the halls to consumers, who could bring their pets, and added a grooming competition, a WCCF cat show, free health checks and rabies vaccinations.
Why Weifang sits at the centre of China’s pet food exports
The city reports more than 30,000 pet-related market entities, about 9.3% of Shandong’s total, and pet food exports above RMB 4 billion a year, close to a third of the national figure. Six hundred and six pet manufacturers operate locally, 84 plants have passed the new veterinary drug GMP on-site inspection (the most in the province), and 31 companies hold pet feed production licences with combined output of 60,000 tonnes and an output value above RMB 1.2 billion. Lusco shares trade on the Beijing Stock Exchange and the company ships to more than 50 countries; it remains the only Chinese meat-powder plant cleared to export to the United States.
The supply side rests on agriculture and logistics. Grain output tops 9 billion jin and meat, egg and milk output reaches 2.29 million tonnes a year, feeding ingredient supply for pet food. Four high-speed rail lines cross the city and eight courier companies run provincial distribution hubs there, which cuts the cost of moving goods to ports and to domestic channels.
Industrial parks are being built around that base. Kuiwen district runs the city’s first pet eco-industrial park focused on e-commerce and product development, where Chongyoujia Group reports annual sales above RMB 600 million. Zhucheng is developing a Sino-German pet economy park for food processing equipment and veterinary medicine, Anqiu’s Zhongchonghui park has signed 11 pet companies with 3 in production, and Linqu hosts more than 10 pet food firms. Across the city, 16 pet-economy projects are under construction with RMB 8.05 billion committed.
What this means for buyers and manufacturers
Regional sourcing shows are not new; what changed is that a cluster of this export weight finally created its own matchmaking event instead of relying on national fairs in Shanghai, Suzhou or Guangzhou. The pet trade show calendar in China is crowded, and CIPS still draws the biggest international crowd, so the test for Weifang is whether repeat buyer attendance follows the first edition. For now, the practical signal for procurement teams is straightforward: factory-direct vetting for one of China’s three main export clusters can be done in one venue, and the finance counters signal that local lenders are underwriting the sector’s smaller plants.
Key Takeaways
- Weifang held its first pet supply chain sourcing conference on October 16-18, 2026, with 200+ exhibitors at the Jinbao International Convention and Exhibition Center.
- The city’s pet food exports exceed RMB 4 billion a year, about one third of China’s national total.
- 606 pet manufacturers and 31 licensed pet feed producers operate locally; 84 plants have passed the new veterinary GMP on-site checks.
- Six banks and one pet insurer offered on-site financing for small and mid-sized pet companies.
- 16 pet-economy projects are under construction in Weifang with RMB 8.05 billion in total investment.
Sources
- Primary — Qilu Net / Lightning News (via Toutiao), 2026 Weifang Pet Industry Supply Chain Sourcing Conference opens, October 17, 2026.
- Secondary — Rural Mass Daily via Qilu Net, “Weifang pet manufacturing connects to global markets”, October 19, 2026.
