What ingredients are in the best cat food

What’s in the Best Cat Food?

The Association of American Feed Control Officials (AAFCO) has established some guidelines for regulator to govern what must be included in a pet food label and what a pet food company can legitimately claim and what they cannot.

Start by looking at the name of the pet food. AAFCO requires that if the food is advertised to contain a single ingredient, it must contain at least 95% of that ingredient, not including added water. Likewise, if a combination of ingredients is advertised, that combination must comprise at least 95% of the food. For instance, if the food claims to be made solely of beef, beef must make up 95% of the food. If the claim is turkey and beef, then the food must be 95% turkey and beef combined.

Foods with descriptive phrases (such as dinner, platter, entrée, etc.) in their names must contain at least 25% of the named ingredient. Products that carry a name that states “with” a specific ingredient (such as “with cheese”) need only contain 3% of the named ingredient. Products that advertise specific “flavors” (such as “chicken flavor” or “beef flavor”) need to contain only a detectable amount of that ingredient.