Whether you’re bringing home a new addition or simply want to
reassess your pet’s current diet, it’s important to take a critical look at the
brands you’re considering. To help you make an informed decision, we’ve put
together some helpful questions to ask yourself while choosing the best food
for your pet.

Do they use
high-quality ingredients?

Your pet’s food is only as good as what’s inside it, so you want
to find a brand that never cuts corners when it comes to ingredients. If you
see things such as chicken meal, meat powders, artificial flavors, colors, or
preservatives in the ingredient list, steer clear!

At Freshpet, the only ingredients we’re interested in are the best we can find. This includes ingredients that are:

  • All-natural
  • Locally sourced
  • Preservative-free
  • No meat powders, meals, or by-products

To learn more about how our commitment to quality goes beyond the ingredients we use, check out our how it’s made page.

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Is a veterinary
nutritionist involved in the company?

Would you eat food from a company that has no nutrition
professionals on its team? If we had to guess, probably not. The same should go
for your pet’s food. You want to choose a brand that has a veterinary
nutritionist involved in their company so you can be sure that the food they’re
offering is nutritionally balanced.

We’re proud of the fact that Freshpet’s full-time head of Research and Development, Dr. Gerardo Perez-Camargo, is a qualified veterinarian with a Ph.D. in Animal Nutrition. He formulates every recipe we produce, so pet parents can rest assured that their pet gets everything they need to live a happy, tail-wagging life.

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What is their impact on
the environment?

The food’s impact on the environment is another important factor
to consider when comparing brands. Look for one that puts the environment at
the forefront of every aspect of their business – from where they source their
products and the packaging they use, to how they distribute their recipes and
how easy it is to be recycled after use.

From our kitchen to yours, we’re always looking for innovative
ways to support our planet. Some of the new ways we’re pushing the boundaries
of what’s possible include:

  • Souring 96% of our ingredients from North
    America (more than half of which are from within 200 miles of our kitchens)
  • Working with farmers to supply chickens and
    turkey that is Animal Welfare Certified by the Global Animal Partnership
  • Partnering with Terracycle to allow Freshpet
    parents to recycle plastics that local municipalities don’t accept

Want to know more? See how we celebrate Earth Day every day at Freshpet.

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Do they share the exact
nutritional content of the food?

The willingness to share the exact nutritional content of their recipes is another sign of a great pet food brand. Knowing what’s inside the food can help you make an informed decision and feel confident that your pet is getting everything they need. Bonus points if they not only share the nutritional content but do so in a way that every pet parent can read and understand!

On each product page, we outline all ingredients (including products and minerals) that are in the recipe as well as a brief nutritional analysis. If Freshpet pet parents want to do a deep dive into the exact nutritional content of their pet’s favorite recipe, they can always access our Nutrient Database to see a guaranteed analysis.

Do they have recipes
tailored to different nutritional needs?

As your pet grows, their nutritional needs change. It’s also not
uncommon for them to develop health issues or allergies throughout their life
that influence the food they need to eat. To avoid having to switch your pet’s
brand of food throughout their life, it can be helpful to choose one that
offers recipes tailored to different nutritional needs.

In addition to our wide variety of “standard” recipes, we also carry a number of special recipes that are tailored to a specific diet, ages, breed size, and health concerns, including:

  • Skin and digestive issues
  • Grain-free
  • Plant-based
  • Puppy
  • Small breeds

You can see our full range of recipes for both cats and dogs here.

After finding the answer to these questions, you’ll quickly see
that the best food for your pet is one that checks all of these boxes!

Source: Freshpet