What Pet Food Product Names Can Tell You

With the myriad selection of pet food available to you, the choices can get confusing. But did you know that the product name holds information that will tell you what’s inside?

Here’s an overview of key words in product names and what they mean. Our source is Canada’s Guide for Labelling and Advertising Pet Foods.

If you see a label that says “MY BRAND” Beef Dog Food, that means beef totals more than 90% of all of the ingredients in the formula and the word “beef” can be included in the product name. If more than one ingredient appears in the product name, they must be shown in descending order by weight but the rule still applies that the total must be more than 90%.  For example “MY BRAND” Beef and Chicken Dog Food.

If you see a label that says “MY BRAND” Beef Dinner Dog Food, that means beef is at least 25% of the total ingredients but less than 90%. In this case, a word like dinner, formula, stew, or meal must appear.  And once again, if more than one ingredient appears in the product name, it must be listed in descending order. “MY BRAND” Beef and Chicken Formula.

If you see a label that says “MY BRAND” Dog Food WITH Beef, that means beef is at least 3%-25% of the mass of all ingredients.

If you see a label that says “MY BRAND” Beef FLAVOUR Dog Food, that means the ingredient in the product name makes up less than 3% of the ingredients.

Now that you know what the labels mean, you’ll be able to tell which foods contain the highest amount of ingredients you and your pet are looking for!