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Rachael Ray Nutrish Cat Food Ingredients

According to our research, Rachael Ray Nutrish manufactures 38 cat food recipes using 147 unique ingredients. To evaluate the quality of ingredients used by Rachael Ray Nutrish, we've studied all 147 ingredients. In this article, we'll share our findings on Rachael Ray Nutrish ingredients.

Cat Food Recipes	38
Unique Ingredients	147
Artificial Colors	0
Animal By-Products	0
Anonymous Meats	4
Controversial	11
Harmful	2

First 5 Ingredients

Cat food ingredients in the United States are listed in descending order of pre-cooked weight. The first 5 ingredients typically constitute a significant portion of the recipe.

For Rachael Ray Nutrish, these are the most common ingredients found within the first 5 cat food ingredients.

chicken
chicken meal
water
dried pea
vegetable oil

As you can see, the most common first ingredient in Rachael Ray Nutrish is chicken. The most common 2nd ingredient is chicken meal, followed by water, dried pea, and vegetable oil.

Artificial Food Coloring Dyes

Rachael Ray Nutrish does not use any artificial food coloring dyes. According to our records, none of the 38 Rachael Ray Nutrish cat foods contain artificial food dyes.

Artificial food coloring dyes are unnecessary and potentially harmful ingredients. In general, we not not recommend feeding any pet foods that contain artificial dyes.

In 2010, the CSPI raised serious concerns regarding the safety of many artificial dyes. Most of the studies referenced by the CSPI involved prolonged or excessive consumption. Since most cats consume the same foods throughout their lives, concerns raised by the CSPI are alarming to say the least.

To read more about Artificial Food Dyes, click here.

Animal By-Products

According to our records, Rachael Ray Nutrish does not contain any animal by-products.

Animal by-products are basically the leftover parts of the the carcass after its been processed for meat. AAFCO defines by-products as the non-rendered, clean parts, other than meat, derived from slaughtered mammals.

Although by-products are still fairly nutritious ingredients, consumers have equated them with slaughterhouse waste. Therefore, most premium brands, including Rachael Ray Nutrish have decided to remove by-products and instead use named organ meats (beef liver, chicken gizzards).

For further reading on the controversy over animal by-products, click here.

Anonymous Meat Ingredients

Anonymous meats are animal-based ingredients which do not provide the source animal's name. These ingredients are controversial because they can come from almost any animal.

In addition, anonymous animal-based ingredients are very inexpensive and often the lowest quality meats that are still allowed to be used in pet food.

In general, we do not recommend feeding any products which contain anonymous meats. When in doubt, always contact the brand's customer service desk for further clarification.

Unfortunately, we've identified 4 anonymous meat ingredients used by Rachael Ray Nutrish.

fish meal

4 Recipes

Fish meal is defined by AAFCO as "the clean, dried, ground tissue of undecomposed whole fish or fish cutting, either or both, with or without the extraction of part of the oil." Since the specific type of fish is not mentioned, we cannot discuss any specific qualities of this ingredient. In general, anonymous ingredients are low quality inclusions when compared to ingredients such as tuna meal, salmon meal, catfish meal, etc.

The following recipes contain fish meal:

poultry fat (preserved with mixed tocopherols)

5 Recipes

Poultry fat is a by-product of poultry tissue rendering. Poultry fat is a controversial ingredient because the specific protein is not specified. Such ingredients are typically low-quality in comparison to named poultry fats (e.g. chicken fat, turkey fat).

The following recipes contain poultry fat (preserved with mixed tocopherols):

animal digest

2 Recipes

Animal digest is the result of undecomposed animal tissue after hydrolysis, a chemical reaction. It is typically used as flavoring to improve taste. Animal digest is considered by many as an undesirable low-quality ingredient. What's more, the source animal is not specified and therefore animal digest can contain almost any animal, including dogs and cats!

The following recipes contain animal digest:

fish protein concentrate

1 Recipes

The following recipes contain fish protein concentrate:

Rachael Ray Nutrish Soft Spots Salmon Recipe

Cereal Grains

Certain Rachael Ray Nutrish cat food recipes contain one or more grains. The specific ingredients are listed below.

For cats, we typically recommend choosing a grain-free recipe. Cats are obligate carnivores and therefore grains are not species appropriate.

The kibble production requires a binding agent. Grains are commonly used for this purpose in cat food. When purchasing grain-free cat food, grains are often replaced with another starchy source. This is also not ideal.

To avoid grains and other starchy additions, consider feeding wet or frozen recipes.

corn gluten meal

5 Recipes

Corn gluten meal is a by-product from the production of various corn products (corn starch, corn syrup, etc). It's very high in protein (nearly 60% protein) and therefore can significant boost the protein content of the product. Because plant based proteins such as corn gluten meal are inferior to meat based proteins (lack many essential amino acids), they are not suitable substitutes.

The following recipes contain corn gluten meal:

brewers rice

7 Recipes

Brewer's rice is the small fragments of rice kernel that are separated from the larger kernels of milled rice. The fragments do not contain the same nutrition profile of the whole kernel and therefore brewer's rice is a lower quality grain. Brewer's rice is typically regarded as an inexpensive and low quality filler.

The following recipes contain brewers rice:

brown rice

2 Recipes

Brown rice is naturally rich in fiber and various minerals including manganese, phosphorus, and magnesium. Relative to other grains, brown rice is easy to digest.

The following recipes contain brown rice:

corn protein concentrate

1 Recipes

The following recipes contain corn protein concentrate:

Rachael Ray Nutrish Super Premium Inner Health - Turkey With Chickpeas & Salmon Recipe

Controversial Ingredients

In most cases, ingredients which are given the controversial classification can be substituted with higher-quality alternatives. You should evaluate each controversial ingredient independently to see if there is truly a valid cause for concern.

Keep in mind, certain sacrifices often must be made to produce cat foods at a reasonable price. In general, the more expensive the product, the fewer controversial ingredients you'll find.

In our analysis, we've identified 11 controversial ingredients inside Rachael Ray Nutrish products. These controversial ingredients are listed below. Click on each ingredient for more information.

iron oxide

1 Recipes

Iron oxide is an FDA approved natural food coloring agent. It's commonly found in rusting metal and provides a reddish-brown color.

We believe food colorants are unnecessary ingredients in cat food. Other than potential harm, food colorants do not provide any nutritional value. These type of ingredients are used only to make the food look appealing to humans.

The following recipes contain iron oxide:

Rachael Ray Nutrish Love Bites Salmon Recipe

powdered cellulose

12 Recipes

Powdered cellulose is produced from minuscule pieces of wood pulp and plant fibers. Other than its fiber content, powdered cellulose lacks any nutritional contribution.

The following recipes contain powdered cellulose:

corn

1 Recipes

Corn is a cereal grain which provides a modest amount of vitamins, minerals, and plant based protein. It also happens to be one of the most controversial ingredients in cat food.

Proponents of corn claim that corn is highly digestible and an excellent source of protein, energy, vitamins, minerals, and essential fatty acids.

Opponents however believe that positive claims in regards to corn are either half-truths or completely false, we'll discuss a few of the opposing arguments.

In regards to digestibility, the claims of "highly digestible" are only true if corn is processed into a meal or flour and subsequently cooked. In regards to the protein contribution, we must note that corn is a plant based protein which does not contain all of the necessary amino acids required by cats to sustain life. Therefore substituting corn for meat is an unsuitable substitution and actually degrades the overall protein quality of the product.

Finally, we'll discuss the claims about vitamins and minerals in corn. Although corn does provide many vitamins and minerals, it not necessarily an exceptional ingredient in this regards. There are many other ingredients which are more complete and biologically appropriate. Therefore the usage of corn as the primary ingredient in cat food should certainly warrant further questioning.

The following recipes contain corn:

Rachael Ray Nutrish Soft Spots Salmon Recipe

corn gluten meal

5 Recipes

The following recipes contain corn gluten meal:

brewers rice

7 Recipes

The following recipes contain brewers rice:

pea protein

8 Recipes

Pea protein is produced by removing the starchy parts of peas. Pea protein is considered controversial because it provides a substantial plant based protein boost. This boost is undesirable because plant based protein is typically lower in biological value when compared to meat based proteins.

The following recipes contain pea protein:

caramel

5 Recipes

Caramel is a widely used natural food colorant. The concentrated form of caramel is typically listed as caramel color and has been linked to cancer in laboratory animals. Since our pets do not care about food color, caramel is an unnecessary addition with possible health risks.

The following recipes contain caramel:

poultry fat (preserved with mixed tocopherols)

5 Recipes

The following recipes contain poultry fat (preserved with mixed tocopherols):

animal digest

2 Recipes

The following recipes contain animal digest:

corn flour

3 Recipes

Corn flour a ground cereal grain which provides a modest amount of vitamins, minerals, and plant based protein. It also happens to be one of the most controversial ingredients in cat food.

Proponents of corn claim that corn is highly digestible and an excellent source of protein, energy, vitamins, minerals, and essential fatty acids.

Opponents however believe that positive claims in regards to corn are either half-truths or completely false, we'll discuss a few of the opposing arguments.

The following recipes contain corn flour:

vegetable oil

12 Recipes

Specific vegetable oils are typically positive ingredients; however, this ingredient does not specify which vegetable(s) were used to produce the oil.

Without this information, it is impossible for us to make any specific statements. With any fat source, it is important to know the omega-3 to omega-6 fatty acid ratio, a property which cannot be determined with this ingredient. Thus, we have marked vegetable oil as a controversial ingredient.

The following recipes contain vegetable oil:

Potentially Harmful Ingredients

Harmful ingredients are those which have been linked to adverse health effects. In general, we do not recommend feeding any product which contains any harmful ingredients.

There are certain situations where these ingredients may be necessary. We always recommend contacting Rachael Ray Nutrish for further clarification regarding any harmful or controversial ingredient.

We have identified 2 harmful ingredients used in certain Rachael Ray Nutrish recipes. To learn more, click on the ingredient's name.

menadione sodium bisulfate complex

2 Recipes

Menadione sodium bisulfate complex is a synthetic version of vitamin K that has been linked to many health concerns. Research has suggested possible toxic reactions in liver cells and red blood cells among other serious problems. In fact, one large chemical supplier warns, "The substance is toxic to kidneys, lungs, liver, mucous membranes. Repeated or prolonged exposure to the substance can produce target organs damage."

The following recipes contain menadione sodium bisulfate complex:

menadione sodium bisulfite complex

26 Recipes

Menadione sodium bisulfite complex is a synthetic version of vitamin K that has been linked to many health concerns. Research has suggested possible toxic reactions in liver cells and red blood cells among other serious problems. In fact, one large chemical supplier warns, "The substance is toxic to kidneys, lungs, liver, mucous membranes. Repeated or prolonged exposure to the substance can produce target organs damage."

The following recipes contain menadione sodium bisulfite complex: