When it comes to selecting food we may glare at the ingredient list, knowing three of the forty items listed, but still trust it due to the FDA regulations in America. However, when looking into food for your furry best friend, things can get pretty complicated. Let’s start with some of the basics. The Association of American Feed Control Organization(AAFCO), requires a few regulations when it comes to pet food labels and websites. This is to ensure there is enough information for us as consumers to make a decision when buying. Listed below are the AAFCO regulations:
The AAFCO 8 key sources of information required to be located on labels:
- Product and brand name
- Species statement – cat or dog food
- Quantity statement – Weight
- Guaranteed analysis – Disclosing protein and fat percentage minimum, fiber and moisture percentage maximum
- Ingredient list – Per AAFCO/FDA definitions
- Nutritional adequacy – If the pet food is ‘complete’ providing all nutrients per AAFCO/FDA nutritional requirements or if the pet food is ‘supplemental” which does not meet the AAFCO/FDA nutritional requirements
- Feeding directions – Not held to any regulatory guidelines and feeding directions are at manufacturer discretion
- Name and address of brand (not actual manufacturer and not contact information)
Starting with a basic, species statement (#2) must be made to know what animal the food is proper for. Product and Brand name(#1), it is required for them to identify the manufacturer, as well as what type of food it is. Product name is much more important than it seems due to a few “rules” within the dog food world.
There are four “loop hole” rules that are important to note to fully understand what is in your dogs food:
- 95% Rule: Named Ingredients “Chicken for Dogs/Salmon Dog Food” must include at least 95% of that meat. Also must be at least 70% of the total product when counting the added water.
- 25% Rule: Dinner, Entre, Platter → Named product is at least 25% but less than 95%. Counting the added water, the ingredients still must comprise 10% of the product.
- “With” Rule: Dog dinner with beef → only 3% of the product needs to contain beef.
- Flavor Rule: a specific percentage of real meat not required, but must contain enough to be detected.
Be wary of another loophole rule when it comes to product names that contain the word “with” or “flavored” or “dinner, entre, platter”. If a food is labeled as a “dinner, entre, platter” there only needs to be 10% actual meat in the contents. If the name consists of “with or flavored” there only needs to be 3% or less meat in the contents.
The quantity statement(#3) is the overall weight of the product after production that will be within the container. This is important when looking into the other nutritional content within the food. Guaranteed analysis (#4) includes the minimum/maximum percentages for certain key nutrients in the food. This analysis focuses on the four basic ingredients: protein, fat, fiber and water. Note, the percent disclosed on the guaranteed analysis is not the actual percent content for each nutrient. If you want a better understanding of what the Guaranteed Analysis is, check out our other articles. We will dive into determining the specific content percentages in our next article, click here.
Next piece of information required by AAFCO is the ingredient list(#5). The ingredient list is written by showing the most used ingredients at the top, decreasing use as the list goes on. On the ingredient list, the first ingredient should always be animal protein; since animal meat is the best source of protein we can give our pup. Some other ingredients you may be unfamiliar with are added vitamins and minerals. The five most commonly added vitamins are: Vitamin A: Improves Vision [Beta Carotene], Vitamin B1: Converts carbs to energy [Thiamine], Vitamin B4: Helps liver and brain function [Choline], Vitamin B7: Improves skin and coat [Biotin] and Vitamin B3: Improves GI enzyme functions [Niacin]. Chelated minerals, inorganic compounds made organic for digestion purposes, are also commonly added to our dogs’ food. While these play an important role, if an ingredient panel is only showing five or less real foods followed by a list of synthetic additives you’re probably feeding a low quality diet.
Carbohydrate contents range in dog food and are not typically stated in the guaranteed analysis. You want to look for foods with low glycemic carbs such as beans, peas and lentils. These are healthy carbohydrates and also have a minimal effect on blood sugar. On the other hand, carbohydrates such as wheat, corn and soy rapidly spike blood sugar leading to more cravings and weaker digestion. Overall calories are important, but not as important as where they are coming from.
The nutritional adequacy(#6) statement identifies if the food provides all nutrients per the AFFCO requirement. There are two ways this statement may be made: A complete nutritional adequacy means that the food does infact fit all the requirements and has been formulated using those guidelines. A supported nutritional adequacy means that the company or manufacturer has fed this product to a species and provided proper nutrition. Overall, it is good to look for a complete nutritional adequacy when purchasing dog food.
Feeding directions(#7) is a broad statement on how the AFFCO recommends feeding a dog based on their ingredients and target audience. There are no regulatory guidelines for dogs, making it up to the manufacturer’s discretion. Lastly, the AFFCO requires the name and address (#8) of the brand to be labeled on the product. Note this is not actual contact information, nor is it necessarily where the food is being produced. Paying attention to these details can make a huge difference in your dog’s life!
