How To Both Read And Understand The Confusing Statements That Pass For A Label On A Tin Of Dog Food
Food packaging is notorious for being difficult to understand, and some of the ingredients we had never heard of turned out to be things such as fat and sugar masquerading under a different pseudonym so as to mislead us over how healthy the food actually is. One area that was never complicated was that of dog food, but as this has evolved over the years these labels are now so complex and have so many long words that the average person on the street can often be confused as to what they are actually feeding their pet.
The Rules For The Wording Of Pet Food Labels
The manufacturers of dog food can be quite devious in the way they label their food, and a few clever nuances, whilst staying within the guidelines set down by the industry, can make the dog owner believe they are giving their dog a much higher quality of food than they actually are. It is practically impossible to tell what is in the tin when it carries terms such as derivatives, cereals and permitted additives, as these generic terms are umbrellas for so many items they could literally be anything.
If your dog has a corn allergy and corn isn't listed in the ingredients, it could be covered by 'cereal derivatives', so the safest bet is to do your research online as this will fully explain the labelling of most foods and allow you to make the informed choice as to which actually best suits the nutritional requirements of your pet.
When Is A Chicken Not A Chicken?
When you see a meat listed on dog food packaging it will more than likely not be chicken as we know it, but rather a meal or, here's that word again, a derivative. Ethical brands will state if it is fresh chicken, chicken meal, chicken liver etc., so you will have a better idea of the actual ingredients in the food. The same principle applies to any other meat product such as beef, and once again it is the ethical brands that are more transparent in their labelling and don't hide behind the generic terms of the cheaper brands.
The net weight of pet food must be listed in metric units, and imperial is optional. Pet foods in cake and biscuit form cannot be sold in packets of no more than 16 and failing to comply with the requirements set out by the industry is a criminal offence which could lead the company being fined 5,000. This is all well and good but removing the grey areas and increasing transparency would be a big leap forward.
âEUR?
The Rules For The Wording Of Pet Food Labels
The manufacturers of dog food can be quite devious in the way they label their food, and a few clever nuances, whilst staying within the guidelines set down by the industry, can make the dog owner believe they are giving their dog a much higher quality of food than they actually are. It is practically impossible to tell what is in the tin when it carries terms such as derivatives, cereals and permitted additives, as these generic terms are umbrellas for so many items they could literally be anything.
If your dog has a corn allergy and corn isn't listed in the ingredients, it could be covered by 'cereal derivatives', so the safest bet is to do your research online as this will fully explain the labelling of most foods and allow you to make the informed choice as to which actually best suits the nutritional requirements of your pet.
When Is A Chicken Not A Chicken?
When you see a meat listed on dog food packaging it will more than likely not be chicken as we know it, but rather a meal or, here's that word again, a derivative. Ethical brands will state if it is fresh chicken, chicken meal, chicken liver etc., so you will have a better idea of the actual ingredients in the food. The same principle applies to any other meat product such as beef, and once again it is the ethical brands that are more transparent in their labelling and don't hide behind the generic terms of the cheaper brands.
The net weight of pet food must be listed in metric units, and imperial is optional. Pet foods in cake and biscuit form cannot be sold in packets of no more than 16 and failing to comply with the requirements set out by the industry is a criminal offence which could lead the company being fined 5,000. This is all well and good but removing the grey areas and increasing transparency would be a big leap forward.
âEUR?
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