How to get it? With nutrition that thinks ahead.
Food For Thought™ Technical Bulletin No. 123R
Innovative Research in Dog and Cat Nutrition™
Pet food products described as light, lite or low calorie must meet specific calorie levels set by the Association of American Feed Control Officials (AAFCO), while pet foods named less or reduced calorie must show a percent reduction in calories as compared to a product in the same moisture-content category. The following table shows the guidelines as set by AAFCO for both dog and cat foods for determining whether a product can use the term light.
|Food Texture||Moisture Content||Dog Foods Maximum kcal ME/kg||Cat Foods Maximum kcalME/kg|
|Dry||less than 20% moisture||3100||3250|
|Semi–Moist||between 20 and 64% moisture||2500||2650|
|Canned||65% or more moisture||900||950|
Like light versus reduced calorie foods, lean or low fat pet food products must meet specific fat levels set by AAFCO, and less fat or reduced fat pet food products need to show a percent reduction in fat as compared to a product in the same moisture category. AAFCO guidelines for dog and cat food products with lean, low fat or similar words are shown in the following table.
|Food Texture||Moisture Content||Dog Foods Maximum % Crude Fat||Cat Foods Maximum % Crude Fat|
|Dry||less than 20% moisture||9||10|
|Semi–Moist||between 20 and 64% moisture||7||8|
|Canned||65% or more moisture||4||5|