Because You Care.
Raw Dog
WHAT'S IN A LABEL?
The pet food label is the first place you can find information about what you're feeding your dogs. Most labels are misleading; therefore, it is your responsibility to know more about it.
Meet FDA and AAFCO.
Each country has their own version of these regulatory bodies.
FDA
U.S. Food and Drug Administration
This is the regulatory body for food.
AAFCO
Association of American Feed Control Officials
They are responsible for setting nutritional standards. They do not regulate, test, approve or certify pet foods in any way.
IT IS THE PET FOOD COMPANY'S RESPONSIBILITY
to formulate products according to the appropriate standards.
IT IS THE STATE FEED CONTROL OFFICLAL'S RESPONSIBILITY
to ensure the laws and rules are kept.
WHAT DOES IT MEAN?
AAFCO and FDA do not have enough manpower to conduct tests and investigate all factories. Result? They have to rely on a company or state's self-policing abilities.
Result? It's much harder to track and persecute companies who are violating the rules and regulations.
Importance of Reading Labels
Why is reading the label important? It's because pet food companies know the average consumer does not know how to read dog labels! The result? They use other means to convince the average buyer that they are selling "food".
Most people buy their dog's food based on
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How good the advertisement (TV, newspaper, internet, etc.) is
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How good the packaging is. Is it colorful and eye-catching? Does it have pictures of happy and healthy looking dogs?
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The number of celebrities/veterinarians/professionals who are openly recommending the product.
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The price. Some people prefer expensive food thinking that expensive is equal to quality ingredients. Some people prefer cheaper dog food because of budget or distrust in expensive dog food.
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Words written on package. Some people buy food once they see the magic words. Examples are: natural, premium, beef, super premium, etc. The better the wording, the more attractive it gets.
Here is a sample of pretty good advertising. It's good because if I didn't know better, I'd switch to this product.
The interesting part is, it sends a subtle message about feeding natural food.
Can you guess what it is?
Basic Dog Food Label Rules
Good Advertising
SO WHAT'S WITH THE WORDING?
At the front of every dog food package, we see the words like "Beef food for dogs" or "Lamb and Rice Formula". The question is, what do they really mean?
I. The first ingredient is the MOST important.
It means that a dog food is consisted mostly of the FIRST ingredient written on the label. All dog foods ingredients are listed based on it's order of weight.
II. 95% Rule
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Applies to products consisting primarily of meat, poultry or fish.
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The ingredient should consist of 95% of the product (excluding the water added for processing and condiments)
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Ingredients should be labeled in descending order (weight)
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Example: Beef for Dogs. The beef should consist of 95% of the product weight.
III. 25% Rule
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Applies to ingredients that comprise at least 25% of the product but less than 95%
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Requires a qualifying descriptive term such as: dinner, platter, entree, nuggets, formula etc.
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Ingredients should be labeled in descending order (weight)
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Example: Beef and Rice Formula
RED ALERT
On the above example (BEEF AND RICE FORMULA), both beef and rice should comprise 25%-94.99% of the products weight. This means that beef and rice may NOT BE THE MAIN INGREDIENTS. That's why you should look at the back of the packaging to see what the product's main ingredient is.
IV. 3% Weight
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If the food contains the phrase "with" such as "with beef and rice", the ingredients should not be less than 3% of the total weight.
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Example: Happy Dog Food with REAL Beef and Rice!
RED ALERT
Since the ingredient should only consist of at least 3% of the total weight... then it doesn't describe what you're feeding your dogs. It's better to read the back of the package to see what the dog food consists of.
V. Flavor/Flavored Rule
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No percentage is required
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The said ingredient should be "detected".
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Example: Happy Dog Food with Lamb Flavor
RED ALERT
Since there is no percentage required, this may well be a play in words. Say you wanted to buy treat your dog to lamb; however, the price is too high. You suddenly come across a product that says, "Happy Dog Food with Lamb Flavor" which was way cheaper. You buy it. Had you read the ingredients at the back of the packaging, you'll find out that you're not really feeding your dog lamb - just the flavor of a lamb.
INFORMATION SOURCE
Description: This website was made by Sabine Contreras. She doesn't believe in pure raw feeding; however, her website gives a pretty detailed information about the pet food industry.
This website was made by a company called Bella Mira. Like Sabine, they don't practice pure raw feeding; however, their website has a pretty detailed information about the pet food industry.