Pet parents are more aware of what goes into their pet’s food than ever before. “Fillers” is a term which can often raise concern. You can find it in marketing messages, blogs, and social media posts of many pet food brands, usually in a negative context. But what does the term mean? The answer is: nothing official. Let me explain fillers in pet food.
At Rewarding Pet Nutrition, I avoid using the term “fillers” because it is unregulated and undefined. Instead, I encourage evaluating each ingredient by reviewing its contribution to your pet’s diet.
Fillers are often described as cheap ingredients to bulk or dilute the diet. The explanation often used is that fillers add no value to the diet, and simply reduce the costs for pet food manufacturers.
Commonly, the term “fillers” is used for ingredients like:
Any company can use the term “fillers” as a marketing term without clearly explaining how it is used . Unlike terms such as “natural” or “fresh” which are defined by regulatory bodies AAFCO and FEDIAF, there are no directions of how the term should be used and there is no legal or nutritional meaning of “fillers.”
Ingredients often classified as “fillers” frequently provide many nutrients or positive qualities to your pet’s diet.
Diets are purposefully formulated to include these ingredients to achieve a careful nutritional balance. Often these ingredients are an important source of fibre. Fibre is crucial in your pet’s diet to maintain their gut health and help with their healthy digestion.
By calling ingredients “fillers,” the focus shifts from its function in the diet to perception, discouraging pet owners from recognizing their benefits. Pet food science is intricate. There are many factors to consider to create a food which is safe, nutritionally suitable and attractive for pets. All ingredients in pet food are included for a reason, whether for meeting the delicate nutritional balance required, ensuring the quality and safety, to achieving a texture of the food, boosting the palatability or other factors.
I select ingredients based on their nutritional contribution, characteristics, and role in supporting pet food quality.
By avoiding the term “fillers,” I hope to convey that every ingredient included in pet food is purposeful. Whether it provides energy, supports digestive function, or supplies essential micronutrients, or something else, it has been chosen with intention and evidence.
We can’t say that every ingredient in a pet food will meet what you are looking for. There are so many pet foods, with different ingredients, which differ in many characteristics. Despite the reason for including an ingredient, you may or may not want it to be included in your pet’s food.
The word “fillers” may sound negative, but it is a marketing term, not a nutritional one. The pet food industry can be confusing to navigate, so I hope that this helps you to avoid unclear terms in marketing and make pet food more transparent.
Would you like a review of your pet’s diet?
If you’d like to schedule a Pet Parent Problem Solving Call with me, follow this link to my calendar!