By Nature Organics (Canned)

by Mike Sagman
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Rating: ★★★★☆

By Nature Organics canned dog food gets the Advisor’s second-highest rating of four stars.

The By Nature organic product line lists four canned dog foods… two meeting AAFCO nutrient profiles for growth and maintenance and two others for intermittent or supplemental feeding only.

  • By Nature 100% Organic Chicken (supplement only)
  • By Nature 100% Organic Turkey (supplement only)
  • By Nature Organic Turkey, Sweet Potato and Peas
  • By Nature Organic Chicken, Carrots and Peas

By Nature Organic Dog Food Chicken, Carrots and Peas formula was selected to represent the others in the line for this review.

By Nature Organic Chicken, Carrots and Peas

Canned Dog Food

Estimated Dry Matter Nutrient Content

Protein = 36% | Fat = 23% | Carbs = 33%

Ingredients: Organic chicken, well water, organic carrots, organic peas, guar gum, locust bean gum, carrageenan gum, dicalcium phosphate, potassium chloride, taurine, calcium carbonate, choline chloride, vitamin E supplement, zinc proteinate (chelated source of zinc, copper proteinate (chelated source of copper), niacin supplement, manganese proteinate (chelated source of manganese), sodium selenite, d-calcium pantothenate, viatmin A acetate, riboflavin supplement, ethylenediamine dihydriodide, vitamin B12 supplement, biotin, vitamin D3 supplement, pyridoxine hydrochloride, thiamine mononitrate, folic acid

Fiber (estimated dry matter content) = 6.8%

Red items when present indicate controversial ingredients

The first ingredient in this dog food is organic chicken. Chicken is considered “the clean combination of flesh and skin… derived from the parts or whole carcasses of chicken”.1

Chicken is naturally rich in the ten essential amino acids required by a dog to sustain life.

The second ingredient is water… which adds nothing but moisture to this food. Water is a routine finding in most canned dog foods.

The third ingredient lists organic carrots. Carrots are loaded with beta-carotene, minerals and dietary fiber.

The fourth item lists organic peas. Peas are a quality source of carbohydrates. Plus (like all legumes) they’re rich in natural fiber.

What’s more, peas contain about 25% protein which must be considered when evaluating the total protein reported in this food.

The next three items are all plant-based thickening agents…

  • Guar gum
  • Locust bean gum
  • Carrageenan gum

From here, the list goes on to include a number of other items.

But to be realistic, ingredients located this far down the list (other than nutritional supplements) are not likely to affect the overall rating of this product.

With one notable exception…

We note this dog food contains chelated minerals… minerals that have been chemically attached to protein. This makes them easier to absorb. Chelated minerals are usually found in better dog foods.

By Nature Organics Canned Dog Food
The Bottom Line

Because By Nature Organic Dog Food contains a number of quality organic ingredients, we feel obliged to accord this line favored status when we consider its final rating.

That’s because organic ingredients are produced under remarkably strict government standards… standards which greatly restrict the use of any synthetic pesticides, herbicides, insecticides, hormones or antibiotics.

But ingredient quality by itself cannot tell the whole story. We still need to estimate the product’s meat content before determining a final rating.

The dashboard displays a dry matter protein reading of 36%, a fat level of 23% and estimated carbohydrates of about 33%.

All the products in the group report the same nutrient percebtages as our chosen example recipe.

Below-average protein. Average fat. And above-average carbohydrates when compared to a typical canned dog food.

Free of any plant-based protein boosters, this looks like the profile of a canned food containing only a moderate amount of meat.

By the way, neither of the two 100% chicken and turkey products were designed to be fed as a complete and balanced canine diet.

These two dog foods are supplements… and supplements only.

Because they probably lack some essential nutrients, supplements must never be fed continuously as the sole item in a dog’s diet.

We prefer to use products like these as a special treat. Or as an appetizing topper… to be served over dry kibble.

The other two dog foods can be fed as complete and balanced diets for puppies or adults.

Bottom line?

By Nature Organics is a meat-based canned dog food using a moderate amount of chicken or turkey as its main sources of animal protein… thus earning the brand four stars.

Highly recommended.

Those looking for an organic kibble from the same company may wish to visit our review of By Nature Organics dry dog food.

A Final Word

This review is designed to help you make a more informed decision when buying dog food. However, our rating system is not intended to suggest feeding a particular product will result in specific health benefits for your pet.

For a better understanding of how we analyzed this product, please be sure to read our article, “The Problem with Dog Food Reviews”

Remember, no dog food can possibly be appropriate for every life stage, lifestyle or health condition. So, choose wisely. And when in doubt consult a veterinarian for help.

Have an opinion about this dog food… or maybe the review itself? Please know… we welcome your comments.

Notes and Updates

04/27/2010 Original review
11/27/2010 Review updated

  1. Association of American Feed Control Officials definition ↩
Dog Food Advisor IconThe Dog Food Advisor publishes independent reviews to help pet owners make better choices when shopping for dog food.


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  • http://DogFoodAdvisor.com Mike Sagman

    Hi Annie… All other things considered, I always rate organic ingredients higher. However, being mostly organic doesn’t automatically neutralize other serious flaws. Organic ingredients don’t excuse low meat content. Unfortunately, there are very few organic products that aren’t predominantly plant based.

  • annie

    I’m surprised that organic products are not rated higher. I would rather have a few percentages lower in protein vs. a high protein diet that is full of antibiotics. I am searching for high quality food that is organic and I don’t see many in the 5-star quality range. Why is that?

  • Andy

    I sent an email to By Nature regarding the high carb content. They replied that their 100% meats have 4.5% dry matter carbs. I suspect your reasoning is correct on why that is.

  • Andy Cook

    Thank you very much for such a thorough answer! I really appreciate it. Also, I’m a 3rd year dental student. Nice to see someone in the profession as obsessed with my dog’s nutrition as me. :)

  • http://DogFoodAdvisor.com Mike Sagman

    Hi Andy… An excellent question. We’ve noticed this same phenomenon with many “all meat” canned foods. And at first, we were perplexed, too. However, after careful study, we believe this condition can be explained by two logical factors:

    1. Manufacturers aren’t required to “guarantee” carbs. Yet they are obliged to assure buyers a product contains a specific minimum amount of protein and fat. Since they’re held (by regulatory law) to those self-proclaimed minimums, they tend to make their guarantees on the conservative side. So, when estimating the carb content, simple math causes carbs to increase as protein and fat decrease. After all, when you add protein, fat, carbs and ash together, that total must equal 100%.

    2. Almost all canned foods contain thickeners (like guar gum, carrageenan, potato starch, etc.) within the liquid part of the product. And the amount of those carb-based gelling agents can be significant.As a matter of fact, that’s where a good part of the product’s fiber comes from

    For example, in both By Nature 100% meat products, the actual products contain 59% combined dry matter protein and fat as well as about 8% ash (minerals). Subtracting this total (67%) from 100% yields an estimated carb content of about 33%. No question, this seems to be in error. And most of it probably is. Just a slight change in the manufacturer’s (as fed, with water) protein and fat guaranteed minimums can make a sizable difference in our math-based carb estimate.

    What’s more, both of these recipes contain “guar gum, locust bean gum and carrageenan”… all carbohydrate-rich ingredients.

    Our take… there’s probably a lot more protein and/or fat in these foods than the manufacturer is willing to guarantee.

    Hope this helps answer your thoughtful question.

  • Andy

    Hi,

    Love your website and thanks for what you do. So, the 100% organic meat cans have 33% carbs? How is that?