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Meat
Look at the Label
Consumers looking for a better commercial dog food must rely on manufacturers to make and label them correctly. Pet foods are regulated on both the national and state levels. Nationally, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) and the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) set the standards for labeling pet foods, including product identification, manufacturer’s name and address, net quantity and ingredients. Most states have their own regulations, which typically are modeled on the Association of American Feed Control Officials (AAF CO) guidelines. AAFCO’s regulations stipulate specific information manufacturers must incorporate, including a guaranteed analysis of the food’s ingredients and a nutritional-adequacy statement, which shows that the food has been shown to be “complete and balanced,” meaning it will meet a dog’s basic nutritional needs. Foods without this statement may require the addition of supplements, such as vitamins and minerals, to complete the canine diet. (For more on label deciphering, see Rules & Regs on below.)
Commercial dog foods are generally lumped into a few categories, including “premium,” “super premium,” “ultra premium” and “gourmet.” Although it’s safe to assume that foods containing exotic meats will be classified thus, these words don’t have any official meaning: Dog foods that carry one of these terms on the label aren’t required to contain better ingredients or pass any more stringent nutritional requirements than ones that don’t.
Many dog foods, including exotic products, are labeled “natural” or “organic.” But this can be tricky, says Nancy K. Cook, vice president of the Pet Food Institute, a trade group representing petfood manufacturers, and chair of the USDA’s Organic Pet Food Task Force. The task force recommended a set of standards for dog and cat foods similar to those used for food intended for humans, but as of today, none has been adopted. That means that a manufacturer that touts its use of certified organic ingredients (or certified organic manufacturing facilities) and uses the official “organic” seal, which is issued by the USDA, must follow the same rules as manufacturers of human food, says Barbara Haumann, a spokesperson for the Organic Trade Association.
The term “natural” does have a definition, although it’s not exactly precise (or legally binding), Cook says. “Basically, a pet food is supposed to be made without artificial colors, flavors or preservatives in order to be called natural,” she says. That, at least, is the AAFCO definition. The FDA and USDA have no official definition of the term.
The bottom line: If you’re thinking of venturing into the exotic aisle, be sure to read the label carefully, says Larsen. Different doesn’t always mean better.
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Rules & Regs
Federal regulations state that dog foods must contain a certain percentage of meat (or other key ingredients) based on names and label claims:
• The 95% Rule. This applies to foods that are almost entirely meat (most often canned, fresh or frozen). It states that a food called Venison for Dogs or Venison Dog Food must contain at least 95 percent venison, not counting the water used in processing (canned foods typically contain 75 to 78 percent moisture, while kibble contains only 10 to 12 percent). If the name includes a combination of two meat ingredients — Salmon and Mackerel for Dogs, for example — the two must add up to 95 percent of the total product weight (and there must be more of the first ingredient listed). If it’s a combination of a meat and another ingredient, such as a grain or vegetable (Elk and Sweet Potato Dog Food, for example), the meat alone must represent 95 percent of the total weight.
• The 25% Rule. This applies to both wet and dry foods, and states that something called Bison Formula (or Bison Nuggets or Bison Dinner or anything else that combines a meat with a descriptive noun) must contain 25 percent bison. In this case, a combination (Bison and Barley or Bison and Beaver) must contain 25 percent of the two ingredients combined, whether the second ingredient is animal or vegetable in origin.
• The 3% Rule. If a product label has an ingredient listed as “with” (i.e., Dog Food with Cheese), that ingredient must represent at least 3 percent of the total weight. This rule also means that labels can be deceiving: Ostrich Dog Food must contain at least 95 percent ostrich meat, but Dog Food with Ostrich can have as little as 3 percent.
• Meat vs. Meal. Ingredients must be listed in order of predominance, but subtleties in ingredient names can create problems. For example, meat meal actually contains more protein and minerals than plain old meat (meal is meat that’s been dehydrated and ground). Meat by-products (made with bone and other odds and ends of tissue) are always an inferior ingredient and should never represent a food’s only major source of protein. Buy foods with a named meat (“rabbit,” for instance, instead of the generic “meat”).
• Nutrition. Look for a statement that the food is “complete and balanced,” meaning it has met AAFCO’s guidelines for nutrition. The label should carry one of two statements: “[Product] is formulated to meet the nutritional levels established by the AAFCO Dog Food Nutrient Profiles,” or “Animal feeding tests using AAFCO procedures substantiate that [product] provides complete and balanced nutrition.” The first tells you that the food’s recipe matches AAFCO’s requirements, the second that it was actually used in feeding trials (experts say the second guarantee is better).
• Preservatives. Virtually all packaged foods need some kind of preservative. Look for natural versions such as vitamins C and E instead of chemicals like BHA, BHT, ethoxyquin and propyl gallate.
This article first appeared in The Bark, Issue 60, Summer 2010
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