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Pet Food 102 - the ingredient list

What’s hype and what is important? An animal nutritionist and pet food designer shares the facts.
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By Jake Davidson

In my attempt to make the world of pet food a bit less confusing last week, I discussed the basics behind pet food regulations and classes. This week I will look deeper into the ingredients. As I explained last week the moisture content of ingredients plays a large role in where they land on a label (first or further down the list).

There is a wide range of moisture in pet food ingredients with grains (corn, barley, or oats) near the 10% level, dry cooked animal meals 5% to 10%, pulses like peas and chickpeas near 15%, and fresh meat ingredients near 70% water. The finished product after extrusion and drying will end up in the range of 8% to 10% water or 90% dry matter.

Foods made with grains, corn gluten, and animal meals (lower priced products) have minimal moisture loss during production whereas foods made with fresh meat will have significant water loss as moisture in the meat has to be cut from 70% to 10%.

Fresh meat is expensive. Depending on the type (pork, chicken, lamb, or venison) it can cost as much as $8,000 a tonne. Removing the excess water makes using fresh meat even more costly. Typically, the more meat (fresh or meal), the higher the price. Do not be afraid of a label listing a meal (chicken, pork, or fish meal) as this is simply fresh meat dried down before being mixed. My one exception is Corn Gluten Meal. CGM is a by-product of the corn syrup industry used as a low-cost source of protein and is a lower quality ingredient.

Understanding premium

This reveals an interesting marketing strategy that leads us to the product classes discussed earlier. As we move from generic to super premium product (low cost to high cost) we go from grain with animal and vegetable meal (generic and popular) to grain free with a combination of animal meals and fresh meat (premium).

Super premium varieties have maximum levels of fresh meat and premium carbohydrates. They will show fresh meat as ingredient number 1 or 2. But, the list is based on pre-processed values while the finished product is much dryer. If a food is designed with 25% (250 kg) of fresh chicken making it #1 on the list, once the food is processed to dry form there is only about 83 kg of chicken. The excess water (70% down to 10%) is evaporated off. Now chicken is no longer the largest proportion of the diet. The take home message is you shouldn’t let the marketing hype on what’s first on the label be the primary determinant in your purchase.

So how do you choose?

1) pick a price point you can afford and review the options.

2) Choose the proper AAFCO designation for your pet (growth and reproduction or maintenance).

3) Pick a flavour your pet likes. Dogs are not as fussy, but cats sometimes fixate on one taste like fish or chicken.

4) Don’t get mesmerized by a long list of ingredients. After the first six ingredients, many of the components are simply there to make you feel good.

5)  Buy a small bag first to ensure your pet appreciates your choice.

Follow the feeding instructions. As you move from generic to super premium the amount of food required daily decreases. With a lower priced product, you may need to feed more. If you move up, you may need to feed less to avoid obesity.

Next week I will discuss all the lower inclusion ingredients and what they offer your pet’s diet.

J.A (Jake). Davidson, P.Ag., PAS

Livestock & Companion Animal Nutritionist

 

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