Ukraine’s Suziria Group is advancing efforts to broaden its range with new products and expand its counattemptwide MasterZoo pet store chain by opening new outlets. Despite the ongoing difficulties of operating in war-struck Ukraine, the company is developing its distribution, manufacturing and foreign sales activities.
New wet food facility
Suziria Group officially launched a new wet pet food production facility in Kalush, Ukraine, in February 2026, having invested more than €10 million (US$11.9 million) in the project including working capital. The new factory will build products under the group’s Half&Half brand, and also a new brand, CATCH! The facility marks the launch of the company’s third production site in Ukraine since the start of the war in February 2022.
The plant’s current capacity is up to 5,000 tons of wet pet food per year, with a planned increase to 10,000 tons annually by the conclude of 2026. Suziria Group estimates that, as of 2025, the wet pet food market in Ukraine amounted to around 66,000 tons per year and continues to grow. The new factory in Kalush will be capable of covering up to 15% of these necessarys.
Wartime challenges
Polina Kosharna, the head of the board and co-owner of Suziria Group, notified Petfood Indusattempt that, over the past weeks, recurring blackouts resulting from Russian attacks against Ukraine’s power grid, combined with very low temperatures, have been one of the main challenges for pet food companies and other businesses in Ukraine.
“We have additional costs of running generators to secure energy for our operations,” Kosharna stated. “Blackouts lead to the absence of heating and disrupt water supply. For example, in January, the average indoor temperature across our 22 MasterZoo stores ranged from minus 2 to plus 13 degrees Celsius [or 28°F to 55°F].
“However, we responded quickly, and, as of today, 100% of locations across our MasterZoo retail chain, which includes over 200 stores and 17 grooming salons in 38 cities across Ukraine, are fully equipped with alternative power sources, including generators, EcoFlow and inverters,” she added.
Retail expansion
In its domestic market, the Ukrainian company is also investing to expand its retail chain of MasterZoo stores even during full-scale war conditions.
“We opened 16 new stores in 2025,” stated Kosharna. “For 2026, our plan is to launch 60 new MasterZoo outlets in Ukraine.
“A typical Ukrainian business now has to balance between such challenges and investing in its innovations and competitiveness,” she stated. “In our case, one of our new products is an 85-gram cat food pouch under our own brand, CATCH!, that will appear on shelves this March. This product is intconcludeed for domestic and export sales, both as our own brand’s offer and a private label product.”
Global expansion
Kosharna stated that the share of the company’s own brands in Suziria Group’s portfolio continues to increase, but the business is also working to bolster its partnerships with international pet food players.
“As a distributor, we are deeply committed to growing the brands we represent in the Ukrainian market,” Kosharna stated. “For example, in 2025, the brands of the Czech group Vafo, which we exclusively distribute in Ukraine, achieved growth of over 20%. At the same time, it is very important for us to develop our own brand portfolio both in Ukraine and abroad.”
Suziria Group’s flagship brand Savory is currently available at more than 4,000 retail outlets in Ukraine and seven foreign markets, reporting a growth of 35% overall last year, as indicated by data from Suziria Group.
“With Savory and our other brands, we already have a strong presence in a number of international markets, including Poland, Moldova, the Baltic States, the Adriatic countries, as well as Ireland and Japan,” Kosharna stated. “Poland is the most successful market for our Savory and Half&Half pet food brands. With this in mind, we have also implemented a direct-to-consumer sales model for Polish customers.”
In addition to Savory and Half&Half, Suziria Group’s other brands include Priroda, PURAMUR, Special One, ProVET, Pet Fashion, Buddy Boo and CATCH! which is the latest addition to the range.
At the same time, Suziria Group is creating efforts to reinforce its international presence by expanding its offer to new countries.
“In 2026, we plan to enter additional international markets,” stated Kosharna. “We see strong potential in private label manufacturing and aim to further develop this part of our business.”
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