How to Read a Pet Food Label

 

Finding the best food is vital to your pet's health and longevity. But deciphering pet food labels can be confusing. Follow these steps to be able to understand pet food labels and be able to compare pet products with confidence.

Understand that pet food labeling (in the U.S.) is regulated by the Association of American Feed Control Officials (AAFCO). However, AAFCO provides only minimum requirements. Be alert to the fact that pet food producers often use terms that are undefined by the regulations to improve their product's image in the market. The AAFCO warns on their website that "it is not rare at all that labeling and marketing information is designed to appeal to the latest trend in marketing human products."

Locate the Guaranteed Analysis on the pet food label. See the example under Tips below. Note that the percentages given for protein, fat, carbohydrates, and fiber are measurements of the food in its current state. However, because different pet foods have different levels of moisture, you can only logically compare pet foods on a dry matter basis.

Notice that moisture levels in pet foods can range from approx. 6% to as much as 80%. Canned food obviously contains more moisture than dry kibble. But it may not necessarily contain as much protein, for example. You can't tell which food contains the most protein, carbohydrate, fat or fiber until you have converted both labels to a dry matter basis.

Determine the amount of dry matter first, by subtracting the percentage given for moisture from 100%. Using the example below, the moisture accounts for 10% of the pet food. Therefore, the dry matter content is (100% - 10% = ) 90% of the pet food.

Convert the protein, carbohydrate, fat and fiber percentages to a dry matter basis by dividing the percentages given on the label by the amount of dry matter (from the previous step). In our example, the 26% protein on the label converts to 28% on a dry matter basis by dividing 26% by 90%. (Notice that in our example the dry matter calculation is only slightly different than the labeled percentage. This is because the moisture level was only 10% per the label. If the moisture level had been, say, 40%, then the dry matter content would have only been 60% and protein on a dry matter basis would have been calculated as (26% divided by 60% =) 43%.)

Compare the new protein level of 28% on a dry matter basis to other pet foods (once you've converted the other pet food labels in the same way). Do similar comparisons for fat, fiber and carbohydrates after converting to a dry matter basis calculation.

Consider that percentages alone don't tell the whole story. You may have 28% protein on a dry matter basis, but what is the source of that protein? You can get protein from animal by-products such as chicken beaks and feet that are NOT good sources of nutrition for your pet!

Look next at the list of ingredients. Pet foods must list ingredients in order of weight. Generally, the first five ingredients will make up the majority of the pet food product. Ideally, look for meat as one of the first ingredients on a pet food label. Grains, such as corn, corn meal, whole wheat, barley, rice and soy are cheap sources of protein that pet food companies use to increase the level of protein on their label, but are often difficult for your pet's to digest. Even the AAFCO website admits that "Economics plays a part in any ingredient selection" and "protein is not simply protein. Ingredients providing protein have specific amino acids which may or may not match the amino acid profile required by a cat or a dog."

Be mindful that pet food manufacturers can manipulate this information (e.g. by breaking an ingredient down into components and then listing them individually so that you don't notice a easily recognized undesireable ingredient too near the top of the list).

Search for pet foods that use human grade ingredients with no animal by-products. Avoid pet foods that use artifical colors, flavors, sugars and chemical preservatives (notably BHA and BHT).

Tips

Here's an example of the guaranteed analysis section of a pet food label: GUARANTEED ANALYSIS: Crude Protein, not less than……….….26.0% Crude Fat, not less than……………....16.0% Crude Fiber, not more than…...............4.0% Moisture, not more than……………….10.0% For more information on what really goes into making pet foods, you can watch a free online video here

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