Pet
Food
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Organic foods

One of the problems facing pet owners who want to feed an organic food to their pet is that (unlike for human food products) there seem to be no rules and regulations pertaining to pet food at the moment in the EU targeting the use of the word 'Organic.' which leaves the field open to quite a bit of interpretation by manufacturers, particularly in relation to certification or ingredients used.

Obviously there are exceptions such as certification by the Soil Association or similar recognised bodies, and pet owners can be reassured by seeing an accreditation logo on the pet food packaging.

The FDA in the US are busy catching up with this problem, introducing suitable regulatory devices, and have this to say:

'The term "natural" is often used on pet food labels, although that term does not have an official definition either. For the most part, "natural" can be construed as equivalent to a lack of artificial flavors, artificial colors, or artificial preservatives in the product. As mentioned above, artificial flavors are rarely employed anyway. Artificial colors are not really necessary, except to please the pet owner's eye. If used, they must be from approved sources, the same as for human foods. Especially for high-fat dry products, some form of preservative must be used to prevent rancidity. Natural-source preservatives, such as mixed tocopherols (a source of vitamin E), can be used in place of artificial preservatives. However, they may not be as effective.

"Natural" is not the same as "organic." The latter term refers to the conditions under which the plants were grown or animals were raised. There are no official rules governing the labeling of organic foods (for humans or pets) at this time, but the United States Department of Agriculture is developing regulations dictating what types of pesticides, fertilizers and other substances can be used in organic farming.'

Are there certified organic products available in the UK?

A example would be Pero, certified by The Organic Farmers and Growers organisation with a typical ingredient list being:

Anything not listed as organic (fish meal, vitamins and minerals) can be assumed not to be.

Another is Yarrah, certified not in the UK but by Skal/ EKO and KRAV, an independent organisation for the supervision of organic production in Sweden, with typical ingredients being:

If feeding as natural a product as possible is your preferred option, then look at the Holistic products on offer. If Organic is your choice then go there, but look carefully at the ingredients. Looking at the examples above, both Pero and Yarrah offer organic, but Yarrah also includes by-products and wheat in their recipe which might not be what you want!

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