Peer-reviewed veterinary case report
Cat food labels often don't match actual nutrition in Australia
By Gosper, E C et al.·Published in Australian veterinary journal·2016·The University of Sydney, United Kingdom·View original on PubMed →
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Original publication title: Discrepancy between the composition of some commercial cat foods and their package labelling and suitability for meeting nutritional requirements.
- Species:
- cat
Plain-English summary
A study found that many commercial cat foods labeled as "nutritionally complete" may not actually meet the dietary needs of adult cats. Out of 20 different wet and dry foods tested, 9 did not match their label claims, and 8 failed to meet the required nutrient standards. Common issues included too much or too little protein, fat, and essential nutrients. This raises concerns about whether these foods are truly suitable for keeping your cat healthy. Pet owners should be cautious and consider checking the nutritional content of their cat's food.
People also search for: cat food nutritional requirements · is my cat's food complete · commercial cat food analysis
Abstract
OBJECTIVE: To investigate if the label information and nutrient composition of commercial cat foods are accurate and compliant with the Australian Standard (AS 5812-2011) and if they meet the nutritional requirements of an adult cat. METHODS: A chemical analysis of 10 wet and 10 dry commercial cat foods labelled as 'nutritionally complete' for the adult cat was performed. The results were compared with the package composition values, the Australian Standard and the unique dietary requirements of the cat. In addition, the results of the chemical analysis were compared with the nutrient requirements published by the Association of the American Feed Control Officials and the National Research Council. RESULTS: When compared with the Australian Standard, 9 of the 20 cat foods did not adhere to their 'guaranteed analysis' and 8 did not adhere to the standards for nutrient composition. Also, various deficiencies and excesses of crude protein, crude fat, fatty acid and amino acid were observed in the majority of the cat foods. CONCLUSIONS: The results of this study highlight a need for an improved method of ensuring that label information and nutrient composition are accurate and comply with the Australian Standard (AS 5812-2011) to ensure the adult cat's unique dietary requirements are being met by commercial adult cat food.
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Search related cases →Original publication on PubMed: https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/26763535/