In case you haven’t read one lately, dog food ingredient lists can be downright ghastly.
Yet these same disturbing lists still represent the only way to catch a glimpse of what’s really inside a product.
Since most of my research had so far been focused on meat protein, I recently decided it was time to take a closer look at the grain side of dog food manufacturing.
And besides, I was really looking forward to taking a break from the grisly subject of meat, and to learning more about what I had imagined to be “wholesome” grains.
Yet nothing had prepared me for the truly disgraceful ingredients I would actually encounter.
Nutritious Grains — or Agricultural Waste?
So, far from the appetizing subject of breakfast cereals I found myself face-to-face with the sinister world of agricultural waste.
And here’s what I discovered…
It seems some of these grain items found on a list of dog food ingredients are nothing more than “tail-of-the-mill” by-products — leftovers from the human food manufacturing process.
It’s this dreadful stuff that’s officially classified as “unfit for human consumption”, yet completely legal for use in commercial dog food.
Take, for example, wheat middlings, a manufacturing by-product also known as wheat mill run.
According to the pet food industry…
Middlings are “fine particles of wheat bran, wheat shorts, wheat germ, wheat flour, and some of the offal [waste] from the tail of the mill”1
Grain industry insiders affectionately refer to this cheap and inferior waste product as “floor sweepings”. Even though this garbage has absolutely no nutritional value… it’s still used to make dog food.
Floor sweepings? Go figure.
Manufacturing Waste — or Dog Food Ingredient?
Then, there’s that mysterious ingredient known as “cereal food fines”? Ever seen this one on a product label before?
Cereal fines are “particles of breakfast cereals obtained as a by-product of their processing”2
Fines aren’t a quality food ingredient. They’re simply manufacturing debris. And since the precise origin of the “parent” cereal is usually unknown, this low quality waste is frequently loaded with unidentified chemical residue.
Basically, cereal fines are lower quality ingredients that have been banned for use in the human food industry.
But guess what? They’re completely legal for making dog food.
Here’s a partial list of some of the more common, inferior quality grain by-products used to make dog food…
- Peanut hulls
- Corn cobs
- Oat hulls
- Rice hulls
- Soybean hulls
- Cottonseed hulls
- Brewer’s rice
- Almond shells
- Grain fragments
- Powdered cellulose
- Fermentation waste
When Cheap Grains Aren’t Cheap Enough
Now, I have to confess, I’ve always had a problem with manufacturers who choose to use such inferior ingredients.
Obviously, these companies are simply focused on profits. On saving money. Not on making good quality dog food.
Think about it.
When you go to the grocery store to shop for an economical meal for your family, what kinds of items do you look for?
Of course, things like wheat, rice, bread, cereal, and pasta — inexpensive grain-based products.
When on a budget, you shop for carbohydrates. After all, if you’re trying to save money, carbs are some of the cheapest items in the store.
And that’s precisely my point.
With wholesome grains so readily available, and priced so low, why must dog food companies opt to use such low quality by-products? Just to save a few pennies?
Thank goodness there are still some respectable companies out there who resist the temptation to choose profit first, over the health of our dogs.
The Dog Food Advisor publishes independent reviews to help pet owners make better choices when shopping for dog food.
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