The List – Truth about Pet Food

You realize the sensation: Standing within the pet meals aisle, overwhelmed, attempting to decipher complicated labels and buzzwords like “pure” and “premium.”

How do you distinguish between real high quality vitamin—meals, not feed—and intelligent advertising with buzzwords?

The tough reality is: Until you perceive the pet meals business’s misleading practices, regulatory loopholes, and non-enforcement of legal guidelines, realizing the distinction between really high-quality pet meals and simply good advertising could be very tough.

That’s the reason we created The Record.

What’s The Record?

The Record is my ‘checklist’ of pet meals, I (Susan Thixton) personally belief to feed to my very own pets. The 2026 Record represents an intensive vetting course of, analyzing each ingredient high quality and producer security requirements.

For every pet meals producer, The 2026 Record offers detailed info on:

Verified Ingredient High quality:

Human grade standing

Natural or non-GMO elements

Meats sourced from licensed humanely raised animals

Nation of Origin for all elements.

Facility Licensing: Whether or not the manufacturing is licensed for human meals (assembly the protection requirements required for human meals) or for pet meals.

Security Protocols: Together with testing carried out, provider necessities, and disclosure of any pesticide fumigation used close to elements or completed pet meals.

Accessible Meals Types: Cooked, uncooked, freeze-dried/dehydrated, air-dried, canned, and veterinary diets (no kibble pet meals included)

Packaging Data: Particulars on recyclability and BPA disclosure.

Word: The 2026 Record is a digital product (a pdf doc).Please learn all info prior to buy. No refunds on digital merchandise.

My Historical past & The Record’s Origin

The 2026 Record marks my twentieth 12 months as an energetic pet meals client advocate. Since launching TruthaboutPetFood.com in 2006 and attending pet meals regulatory conferences since 2009, I’ve spent numerous hours difficult the FDA and AAFCO on behalf of pet house owners. On account of this intensive, hands-on expertise, pet house owners constantly requested me for meals suggestions.

Whereas I can not/don’t make particular model suggestions, I can—and do—supply a ‘checklist’ of meals I belief. I ONLY belief these pet meals as a result of I’ve personally verified the ingredient high quality for every meals (every ingredient).

That checklist, The Record, was first printed in 2012 and is up to date yearly. Really, EVERYTHING begins over every year. This 12 months we began with an inventory of over 100 pet meals producers, that quantity was lower to 58, and at last ended with 45 producers. 

Every of the 45 producers responded to our very detailed questions, supplied verification paperwork to high quality of elements and dietary supplements, supplied verification to natural elements and meats from licensed humanely raised animals (if relevant). 

The 2026 Record consists of:

45 manufacturers

35 produce cat meals

42 produce canine meals

Types of pet meals included:

22 manufacturers present cooked

24 manufacturers present uncooked

14 manufacturers present freeze dried/dehydrated

4 manufacturers present air dried

3 manufacturers present can

2 manufacturers present veterinary diets

The place these manufacturers are bought:

42 out there in US

13 out there in Canada

11 out there outdoors North America (restricted distribution) 

We’ve spent numerous hours cross-checking claims, and verifying ingredient requirements so that you get the knowledge you could make a top quality pet meals choice.

On the similar time you might be supporting pet meals client advocacy together with your buy of the Record AND supporting pet meals manufacturers that go to the trouble of producing a top quality pet meals while you buy these merchandise.

Word: The 2026 Record is a digital product (a pdf doc).No refunds on digital merchandise.

The Pet Meals Business is a Minefield of Misinformation and Regulatory Loopholes

The nontransparent nature of pet meals regulation and ingredient sourcing presents a continuing problem for pet house owners in search of to supply optimum vitamin for his or her pets. What seems on a product label typically hides a actuality far completely different than the shiny, healthful ingredient imagery introduced in advertising supplies.

The Disturbing Fact About Ingredient Sourcing: Diseased and Decomposing Animals

Maybe probably the most disturbing facet of the prevailing regulatory atmosphere is the Meals and Drug Administration’s (FDA) permissive stance on using “unfit” animal materials. Have you learnt that the FDA permits pet meals producers to supply meats from diseased, disabled, and even decomposing animals—supplies explicitly condemned as unfit for human consumption—and they aren’t required to reveal this to customers?

The company’s rationale, revealed of their formal response to our Citizen Petition demanding an finish to this unlawful observe, is alarming: “We don’t consider that using diseased animals or animals that died in any other case than by slaughter to make animal meals poses a security concern and we intend to proceed to train enforcement discretion.”

The Shady Loophole: When the FDA Lets Pet Meals Corporations Off the Hook

Let’s be blunt: “Enforcement discretion” is only a fancy method the FDA makes use of to say, ‘We all know federal meals security legal guidelines apply right here, however we’re selecting to not make pet meals firms comply.‘

This coverage is a serious drawback for the meals our pets eat. 

Primarily, this creates a particular, softer algorithm for the pet meals business. It permits them to maintain utilizing sure elements, processes, and labels that will in any other case be unlawful, adulterated, or deceptive beneath the total power of the regulation. The underside line is that our companion animals find yourself with a much less secure, much less clear, and infrequently worse-quality meals provide, all due to an official-sounding time period (enforcement discretion) that hides the company’s failure to do its important job: defending customers.

This FDA lack of enforcement permits producers to prioritize revenue margins over ingredient high quality and client honesty.

The Authorized Double Customary: Pet Meals Substances Versus Human Meals Substances

A cornerstone of pet meals client deception lies within the drastically completely different authorized definitions assigned to similar ingredient names between human meals and pet meals. EVERY single ingredient utilized in pet meals has its personal separate authorized definition that enables for a dramatically decrease high quality normal than an ingredient of the identical identify in human meals.

Contemplate the ingredient “rooster“:

Human Meals Rooster: While you see “rooster” listed on a human meals label, strict authorized necessities mandate that the meat should be sourced from a wholesome chicken, be inspected and “handed” by the U.S. Division of Agriculture (USDA), and deemed healthful for human consumption.

Pet Meals Rooster: While you see the very same ingredient identify on a pet meals label, there’s NO authorized requirement for it to be USDA inspected, healthful or move inspection. The authorized definition of pet meals ‘rooster’ is broad sufficient to allow the inclusion of condemned poultry, elements of diseased animals, or “non-slaughtered” rooster—which means poultry that died on the farm from sickness, damage, or neglect somewhat than being humanely processed in a slaughterhouse.

This similar precept of a break up authorized definition applies throughout the board, from “beef” and “pork” to varied grains and plant proteins. The time period/ingredient identify on the pet meals label is identical as on a human meals label, however the supply, high quality, and potential contamination stage will be dramatically completely different.

The Essential Lack of Disclosure

Probably the most insidious a part of this method is that pet meals producers are usually not required to speak in confidence to you which of them high quality—generally known as human grade or feed grade—of ‘rooster’ (or beef, or corn, or complement) they’ve truly utilized. Shoppers are left to rely fully on advertising imagery and imprecise ingredient panels, compelled to belief that their pet’s meal is made with the identical high quality requirements as their very own meals—a belief the regulatory framework actively permits producers to betray. With out obligatory disclosure, transparency stays elusive, and the facility to make really knowledgeable buying choices is withheld from the pet proprietor.

Once more, that is why we created the Record.

Word: The 2026 Record is a digital product (a pdf doc).No refunds on digital merchandise.

You’ll be able to obtain the 2026 Record instantly after buy, proper within the purchasing cart. Earlier than you shut the purchasing cart, click on on the ‘Go to downloads’ hyperlink to right away obtain the doc.

Additionally, you will be despatched an order affirmation electronic mail with a obtain hyperlink. Within the electronic mail, beneath the part “Your Order Accommodates…” click on on the Obtain Information hyperlink.

We respect your assist of TruthaboutPetFood.com. As a completely pet meals consumer-supported group, we function with full independence.

Key Information concerning the 2026 Record:

No pet meals producer pays a price for consideration or inclusion within the Record.

Producers included within the Record are usually not permitted to buy the doc.

We have now no affiliate agreements with any pet meals, whether or not they’re included within the Record or not.

TruthaboutPetFood.com or Susan Thixton receives no compensation, of any sort, from any pet meals firm.

Susan ThixtonPet Meals Security AdvocateAuthor Purchaser Beware, Co-Creator Dinner PAWsibleTruthaboutPetFood.comAssociation for Fact in Pet Meals

Discover Wholesome Pet Meals in Your Space Click on Right here

The 2026 ListOur trusted ‘checklist’ of pet meals. Click on Right here to study extra.

The 2025/26 Deal with ListSusan’s Record of trusted pet deal with producers. Click on Right here to study extra.

Affiliation for Fact in Pet Meals is a stakeholder group representing pet meals customers at AAFCO and with FDA. Your membership helps representatives attend conferences and voice client considerations with regulatory authorities. Click on Right here to study extra.