Pet food takes up enormous real estate on the store shelves of leading grocery chains, and if you’re a dog owner, sifting through the options can be overwhelming. Wet or dry? Young or mid-range life stage? Which conditions – weight control, sensitive skin – does my pup have? And now, the latest all-natural pet food craze has presented owners with another decision to weigh: organic, locally sourced and produced, or standard mass-produced?
Marion Nestle (not related to Nestle Global), a renowned expert who has authored several exposés on the (human) food industry has also delved into demystifying the politics, marketing and science behind the $18 billion pet food industry with her book Feed Your Pet Right. According to Nestle, the junk that winds up in our dog’s food has serious consequences on their quality of life. And since the catastrophic 2007 pet food recall, there’s been a huge spike in interest about what to feed our pets. While home made pet food is most ideal (see Nestle’s own recipe or check out Findlay Market’s Pet Wants), Nestle has these tips for owners wanting to feed their pooches right:
- Look for the words “complete and balanced” on the package. That’s code for meeting all the nutritional standards set by the Association of American Feed Control Officials (AAFCO) – the non-regulatory agency that sets the pet food standards.
- Only focus on the first five ingredients on the ingredient list; after that, the ingredients are so small, they are inconsequential. The first five should be real foods – not wheat gluten or something that doesn’t sound like real food.
- Buy organic, seasonal and locally grown (which can be found in commercial brands) but be prepared to pay more.
What do you think? What should we feed our pets?
