| The term 'premium' implies the highest level of | | | | manufacturers, feed-grade ingredients are generally |
| quality; something that is 'top-drawer' or 'first-class.' | | | | not healthy choices as ingredients for so-called |
| Google yields about 5,930,000 results for the term | | | | 'premium' pet foods. Quite honestly, feed-grade |
| 'premium pet food.' Wow - so many great, nutritious | | | | ingredients cannot be a healthy choice for any pet |
| options for Fido and Spot! But, hold on: if you actually | | | | food. |
| take a closer look, the term 'premium' seems to be | | | | Truthfully, very few of the premium pet foods that |
| applied to almost every pet food that is free of | | | | aren't also USDA certified organic contain ingredients |
| artificial colors, flavors or preservatives. | | | | that are based on natural, minimally processed, foods. |
| Although manufacturers of so-called premium pet | | | | A truly healthy premium pet food is, quite simply, |
| foods often use lower quality animal and fish meals, | | | | holistic. Certainly the formulation of such a pet food |
| gluten, or fish oil, they exploit this very effective | | | | would start with whole food-based ingredients that |
| marketing term to advertise and sell their | | | | are USDA certified organic. In the U.S., organic |
| less-than-high-quality products. Sometimes, these | | | | certification is currently the only guarantee that a |
| manufacturers even combine the terms 'premium' and | | | | given pet food contains no genetically engineered |
| 'holistic' to describe their products. | | | | ingredients or synthetics of any kind, and that it is |
| So, let's talk about many pet food manufacturers' | | | | free of most toxic residues that can accumulate both |
| choices of ingredients for products they label | | | | during ingredient production and food processing. And, |
| 'premium.' First of all, what's wrong with animal meals? | | | | of course, it shouldn't be forgotten that both |
| For one thing, this class of ingredients is not well | | | | genetically modified organisms (GMOs) and agricultural |
| defined, and may even pose health risks to your | | | | toxins have been implicated in several diseases. |
| animal. Animal or fish meals are defatted and the fat | | | | True holistic premium pet foods only use unrefined |
| is often sold generically as 'animal fat.' Although such | | | | ingredients which are gently processed. The |
| defatting makes it easier for companies to produce | | | | refinement of ingredients alters their nutrient |
| pet foods with very specific nutrient contents, it | | | | composition, can degrade their nutritional quality, and |
| doesn't necessarily contribute to a healthy diet for | | | | in extreme cases, even render them useless or |
| your animal. Chemically, these pet foods may contain | | | | unhealthy. For example, heat processing destroys |
| appropriate amounts of protein, fat, carbohydrates, | | | | most ingredient-based nutrients, and is therefore |
| vitamins, and minerals; unfortunately, intensive | | | | another reason why questionable nutrient-vitamin |
| processing yields products that are far from | | | | mixes are added to pet foods. Moreover, some |
| natural-and certainly far from healthy for your animal. | | | | manufacturers seem to disregard the fact that |
| Aside from the use of low-grade ingredients, most | | | | neither dogs nor cats are natural grain-eaters. |
| manufacturers of premium pet foods add slurries of | | | | Grains-particularly low-grade, refined and overly |
| vitamin-mineral premixes, and this allows them to | | | | processed ones-are known allergens for these |
| designate their foods 'complete' or 'balanced.' | | | | species. Yet manufacturers add grains to their dog |
| Considering the low quality of over-processed and | | | | and cat food products to decrease their costs (more |
| otherwise altered ingredients used in most premium | | | | cheap fillers, less expensive proteins and quality |
| pet foods, it is understandable that vitamins (mostly | | | | carbohydrates) and increase their profits. In contrast, |
| synthetic) need to be added as an afterthought to | | | | holistic premium pet foods are generally formulated in |
| provide some nutritional quality. But such premixes | | | | consideration of the nutritional requirements of the |
| are often themselves low in quality and generally | | | | particular species for which the food was formulated. |
| produced with little quality control in countries with | | | | So, notwithstanding the claims of all the 'premium |
| minimal regulatory oversight. Now, if ingredients were | | | | poseurs' out there, the best premium pet foods are |
| of good quality, use of such premixes could be | | | | those that contain gently processed, USDA certified |
| reduced greatly, and even replaced by whatever high | | | | organic, whole food-based, human-grade, and |
| quality nutrients cannot be readily supplied by the | | | | species-appropriate ingredients. When shopping for |
| primary ingredients themselves. Due to lack of | | | | your pet's food, follow this list of criteria and you |
| regulation, low operating standards, and minimal | | | | won't go wrong! |
| ethical concerns on the part of some pet food | | | | |