Premium Vs. Regular Dog Food: What You Need To Know

Truth Is, The Word “Premium” Doesn’t Mean Much

The word premium means how a brand expresses its food quality. If we look into the term premium in the human food industry, it was first used by alcohol companies to market slightly better quality liquor at a quite high price and then the term was later borrowed by other food and cosmetics brands. However, in the dog food industry, this term surprisingly has no legal definition. 

The real reason behind labeling dog food premium is to justify the more money it costs and not necessarily the presence of better quality ingredients. For dog foods, the term premium is only used to attract more dog owners concerned for the health and nutrition of their canine friends. This article will help you to determine what the word premium on dog foods really means and what to actually look for while buying food for your dog.

What Premium Should Actually Mean

The real premium food is made from organic and natural ingredients. That being said, all dog foods should come from natural ingredients and the word premium should not be used to differentiate between good or bad quality dog food. If any dog food brand claims to contain natural ingredients devoid of unnecessary preservatives or other chemical components then the food is definitely worth it. And in this case terms like premium, super-premium, or holistic will not matter at all. As long as the food provides good quality or has the appropriate mix of ingredients. 

Difference between Premium and Regular Dog Food

Frankly speaking, there is no real difference between premium or other regular dog foods.

Premium is just a marketing term used by companies to get customers more inclined toward

their products. It is a common perception that the more expensive a product is, the better it tastes, or the better it is, quality-wise. Dog food companies use this very perception to attract more dog owners to their brand of food. 

The problem is that the term premium in the dog food industry is not even backed by any food regulatory authority or special nutrition value. It is better not to be lured into the spiral of fancy labels and conduct your research as to which ingredients are better for your dog because these fancy terms truly mean nothing. 

Fancy Labels vs Ingredient List

The things that should be kept in mind while buying the best dog food are the healthy

ingredients. Dog owners must read the ingredient section carefully to make sure that any harmful substances are not used as ingredients. Sometimes vague terms are used to define an ingredient which is not a good sign as well. For instance, the word meat is a bit doubtful as the type of meat must also be mentioned as beef or poultry. On top of that, the lesser the number of ingredients used in the list the better is the quality of food. Good healthy food brands mostly put the first ingredients like meat and then also label the kind of meat as well.

The next thing to look for in ingredients is the appropriate ratios of proteins, carbohydrates, and fats. And constituent proteins must be meat-based. No by-products of meat, additives, and preservatives. Food coloring must also be avoided because unnecessary coloring components can be cancer-causing. 

Excessive use of grains is also not an essential component of dog food because most dogs are allergic to nuts and grains and grains are mostly used as fillers. Dog food that is approved by food regulation authorities like AAFCO is clearly a better choice. Always look for their approval and certification on the food packaging. Dog foods containing FDA-approved ingredients are also best. Here is a list of the things that you must look at before buying dog food regardless of the premium label to provide a healthy and beneficial meal for your dog:

• Main ingredient Meat (beef, poultry or other)
• Proteins sourced from meat
• Proper proportions of nutrients like carbohydrates, protein, and fats
• No excessive fats
• No meat by-product
• No additives
• No preservatives
• No excessive food coloring

You should also make sure that the percentage of main ingredients should be high and other less beneficial ingredients should be in less percentage. The above list will surely make your life easier when finding the best food for your dog because it can be haunting to look for suitable dog food among the aisles and aisles of various dog foods with even more labels and meaningless terms.

Furthermore, a food labeled as premium does not clarify its suitability for the type or breed of dog that you own. As a dog owner, you must know that different breeds of dogs require different combinations of ingredients in their food. It makes sense because some breeds need more carb-based foods while others need more protein-based foods with combinations of various supplements. This matter should also be considered while shopping for dog food. 

Dogs with different health concerns also require foods with special vitamins and supplements. So a detailed look at the ingredients and components of food is always a better idea than just trusting the unnecessary food labels.

Putting It All Together

It might sound like a challenge to read the ingredients list and determine the quality of food for

your dog. But it is a better and more efficient way to do that instead of trusting the meaningless fancy terms such as premium. If the word premium does mean something then it must be used to signify the quality of the food, instead, it is seen that premium dog food does not show any special or more nutritious ingredients but the same as any other regular dog food but

with the extra price. 

At the end of the day, we all need the best food fortified with proper supplements and vitamins, for our canine friends. And to do that, looking for dog food quality is a far better choice than just believing the fancy food labels because premium does not necessarily means, quality dog food.