I am a label reader.  I have a tree nut allergy, and another to anything in the ragweed family.  So, for myself, I have become a voracious label inspector.  And, I find myself doing the same for my pups.  So, how do you think I felt when I learned of a dirty little trick some food companies use, called "ingredient splitting?"  

WHAT THE HECK IS INGREDIENT SPLITTING ANYWAY???????

Simply put, it's a way to push more "desired" ingredients to the top of the list on a label.  For instance:

Here's corn.  If you were to simply list "corn" as an ingredient, the percentage, in relation to the remaining ingredients, is quite large.  And most consumers these days, don't want to see corn as the first ingredient on their furkid's food label.  So....

PROBLEM SOLVED!  For the food companies maybe....

~Being able to divide a dominant ingredient into smaller portions permits any pet food company to trick you into believing there’s more meat in a product than there actually is.~

Some other examples to look for when ingredient splitting can occur:

  • Corn: Corn gluten meal, corn flour, and whole ground corn
  • Rice: whole rice, white rice, brown rice, rice flour and rice bran
  • Potatoes: dried potatoes, potato starch, potato protein, and potato flour

https://www.dogsnaturallymagazine.com/dog-food-ingredient-splitting/

So, what's a loving pet parent to do?  Luckily, there are LOTS of options out there that are great, healthy choices...that won't break the bank.  While you ponder how many times an ingredient is being split in your pup's bowl, here are some good choices to aim for:



Here's a link to a great article from Dog Food Advisor:  https://www.dogfoodinsider.com/top-10-dog-food-ingredients-dogs-good-health/

Of course, we at the Barkery are always ready, willing, and able to put in our knowledgeable 2 cents, and give advice on steering towards food ideas that are right for you and pup and/or kitty.  Our homepage has a complete listing of all brands we sell, or feel free to give us a call!