VAFO Bets on Diagnostics with Investment in PEZZ Life
The Czech pet food group is taking a strategic stake in an Austrian diagnostics company as it pushes beyond nutrition into prevention.
By Good Company Editorial Desk
By Good Company Editorial Desk | September 29, 2026
The News
VAFO Group announced on September 16, 2026 that it has made a strategic investment in PEZZ life, an Austrian pet health diagnostics company. GlobalPETS described the deal as a minority stake; the amount invested was not disclosed. The investment establishes scientific and commercial cooperation between PEZZ life and Biome9, the gut-health testing company VAFO acquired through its Pooch & Mutt brand in 2025. The two companies will develop a joint roadmap while continuing to operate independently.
VAFO board member Timo Pärssinen said the ambition is to connect nutrition, prevention, and health insights, potentially pairing testing data with tailored nutrition recommendations. PEZZ life is led by founder and chief executive Markus Zengerer.
Why It Matters
Pet food companies have been talking about the convergence of nutrition and health for years, but most of the action has been in marketing language rather than capabilities. VAFO is now buying the capabilities. A diagnostics asset plus a gut-health testing asset plus a portfolio of food brands is the raw material for a genuinely personalized nutrition offer: test the dog, read the results, recommend the recipe. No European pet food group has fully closed that loop yet, and VAFO is positioning to be first.
The deal also continues VAFO's busy 2026. The group acquired German direct-to-consumer premium brand Pets Deli in August, and the PEZZ life investment a month later shows a holding company that is deploying capital on two fronts at once: premium brands and health services. That is a broader definition of a pet food company than the industry is used to.
The Numbers
VAFO's scale puts the strategy in context. Founded in 1994 in the Czech Republic, the group runs 9 pet food factories producing more than 220,200 tonnes a year and sells brands in over 90 countries. It reported sales of 676.3 million euros (about $770 million) last year and is targeting 1 billion euros in revenue by 2029, following a restructuring that split the group into three entities covering branded products, private label, and production. PEZZ life's broader health-marker testing complements Biome9's gut microbiome focus, giving VAFO two distinct testing modalities to work with.
The undisclosed investment amount is the gap in the story. A small strategic check and a major platform bet would read very differently, and the seriousness of the joint roadmap with Biome9 is the best available proxy for how much VAFO cares.
What To Watch
The joint roadmap between PEZZ life and Biome9 is the thing to track. If the two companies produce an integrated testing offer within the next year, VAFO's prevention thesis is real; if the roadmap stays vague, the investment may be more option value than strategy. Also watch whether testing data starts showing up in VAFO's brand marketing or product recommendations, since that is where the nutrition-meets-diagnostics story either becomes tangible for pet owners or remains a corporate slide. And keep an eye on competitors: if VAFO's move works, expect other European groups to shop for their own diagnostics assets.
Sources
VAFO Grows Health and Nutrition Portfolio with PEZZ Life Investment (GlobalPETS, September 2026)
VAFO Group Invests in Pet Health Diagnostics (International Pet Food, September 2026)