Royal Canin and JD Health on Aug 20, 2026 used Pet Fair Asia 2026 in Shanghai to formalize China’s first prescription-pet-food industry standard — the General Requirements for Complete Prescription Pet Food (《全价宠物食品 处方粮通用要求》) — as JD Health’s prescription-food Gold Selection准入 benchmark. The standard became effective May 1, 2026 and requires that Gold Selection-tagged prescription products meet defined moisture-content classifications, 19 specialized nutritional indicators, raw material controls and hygiene benchmarks.
JD Health disclosed that H1 2026 prescription-food GMV grew approximately 40 percentage points faster than the overall category. JD adds service guarantees including 100× compensation on counterfeit products and free returns if pets refuse to eat, alongside 24/7 access to over 6,000 licensed veterinarians through the JD Pet Hospital platform. The new ZhongAn Insurance pet medical insurance product launched in March 2026 now includes prescription food in its direct-reimbursement formulary.
Concurrently, Royal Canin launched three new small-dog prescription SKUs on JD Health as the exclusive online launch platform: a urinary health formula, a digestive health formula, and a weight management formula. Each is formulated and smaller and kibbleed to address small-breed physiological metabolism, with the urinary formula designed in cooperation with veterinary partners. JD prescription food is growing faster than category averages and is anchored by clinical credibility rather than mass-market positioning.
The same day, Royal Canin co-drafted and published the Pet Dog and Cat Trading Management Standard (《宠物犬猫交易管理规范》) with the China Veterinary Medical Association, China’s first group standard covering the full pet-trading lifecycle from health check to delivery traceability. With this addition, Royal Canin has now co-authored six pet-industry standards in China, covering trading, prescription food, life-cycle nutrition and clinical specialty development.
For B2B partners, Royal Canin’s standard-and-platform co-strategy is converting regulatory authorship into permanent JD Health shelf access — effectively raising the准入 bar for mid-tier competitors. Distributors and competing manufacturers should align their prescription-food compliance and documentation systems accordingly.
