Natural Balance Limited Ingredient Diets High Protein Salmon Formula For Cats Review
Orange: controversial ingredients
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Review of Natural Balance Limited Ingredient Diets
High Protein Salmon Formula For Cats
This product is manufactured by Natural Balance Pet Foods. Natural Balance Pet Foods is a subsidiary of Big Heart Pet Brands. In addition to Natural Balance, Big Heart Pet Brands also owns Nature's Recipe, Milk Bone, Meaty Bone, Meow Mix, PupPeroni, Ally Cat, and several other brands.
According to our data, this Natural Balance recipe provides complete & balanced nutrition for the maintenance of adult cats. In other words, this formula is AAFCO approved.
Natural Balance Limited Ingredient Diets High Protein Salmon Formula For Cats is formulated to meet the nutritional levels established by the AAFCO Cat Food Nutrient Profiles for the maintenance of adult cats.
Ingredient Review
We'll begin this review of Natural Balance Limited Ingredient Diets High Protein Salmon Formula For Cats with a detailed discussion of the ingredients.
The first ingredient is salmon. Although salmon is an excellent protein and omega-3 fatty acid source, raw salmon contains more than 60% moisture. After cooking, the relative meat contribution of salmon is dramatically reduced. Therefore, it's important to ensure that other meat sources are included within the first few ingredients to ensure the product derives most of its protein from meat.
The second ingredient is pea. Peas are high-protein legumes which supply a healthy dose of dietary fiber and several important vitamins and minerals.
The third ingredient is salmon meal. Salmon meal is produced by cooking salmon using a process called rendering. The rendering process dramatically reduces the natural moisture of salmon and thereby results in a highly condensed protein source.
The fourth ingredient is pea protein. 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 fifth ingredient is canola oil (preserved with mixed tocopherols). Canola oil is extracted from canola plant seeds. Many people believe that canola oil is basically an improved rapeseed oil.
Canola oil is controversial because rapeseed oil is actually dangerous for human/animal consumption.
Because ingredients are listed in order of pre-cooked weight, the remaining ingredients in Natural Balance Limited Ingredient Diets High Protein Salmon Formula For Cats are not as important as the first five ingredients.
However, collectively they still have a significant impact on the overall quality of the product. Therefore, we'll continue discussing the remaining ingredients in this Natural Balance recipe.
Next we have dried brewers yeast. Dried brewers yeast is a by-product of the brewing industry. Brewers yeast is rich in various minerals and contains a notable amount of protein.
The next ingredient is natural flavor. Natural flavor is used to modify the foods flavor and increase palatability.
Then we have flaxseed. Flaxseeds are an outstanding source of omega-3 fatty acids and dietary fiber. They also provide a notable amount of protein, B vitamins, and various minerals.
Moving on, we have citric acid. Citric acid is an antioxidant commonly used in pet food as a natural preservative. There are concerns regarding possible links between citric acid and canine bloat, but these claims are not backed by any credible scientific evidence.
The remaining ingredients in this Natural Balance Limited Ingredient Diets recipe are unlikely to affect the overall rating of the product.
Our analysis of the ingredients show that this product derives most of its protein from animal based sources. This is an excellent property because meat based protein contains all of the necessary amino acids required by cats. In our option, this is one of the most important properties to judge when reviewing pet food, therefore we believe this is an exceptional product in this regard.
Final Thoughts
In summary, we recognize that this product does not contain any artificial colors, artificial preservatives, or anonymous meat ingredients.
The official PawDiet rating for Natural Balance Limited Ingredient Diets High Protein Salmon Formula For Cats is 2.0 out of 5.
