H, Lynne: Here's what my friend had to say about this food. Cross-posted with permission.
I went to the website and got the full ingredient list, so that's why this list looks slightly different from the paragraph of ingredients in your original post. I'm looking at the first 10 ingredients, as those are (obviously) the most plentiful and the most important.
1. Organic Rolled Rye: better than corn as protein source
2. Organic Rolled Barley: better than corn as protein source
3. USDA Beef: excellent that "whole" animal protein source is #3!
4. Organic Flaxseed: has mucin (for a shiny coat!)
5. Organic Rolled Oats: better than corn as protein
6. Carrots
7. Alfalfa: VERY high in protein (compared to other roughages)
8. Potatoes
9. Eggs: excellent animal protein source!
10. Red and Green Bell Peppers
I think this is an excellent food. The rye, barley, & oats are all good sources of plant protein. Barley and oats are both higher in protein than corn, which is the most common cereal grain found in dog food (and is also a common allergen). It's excellent that "beef" is the 3rd ingredient, and not "beef meal" or "beef product." The "USDA beef" thing is kind of amusing to me because there are 10 levels quality for beef...USDA 1 being the very best (obviously) and USDA 10 being the worst. USDA 10 beef could legitimately be called "USDA beef" even though it's really just scraps off the cow that would NEVER make it to a supermarket. But that's just a fairly irrelevant and very random/nerdy observation on my part . The flaxseed is great for the "coat conditioning factor." Alfalfa is FANTASTIC as a protein source -- in fact it is by far the #1 choice for a protein source from a roughage (which is why it makes outstanding hay...LOL). Eggs are fabulous, too, and one of the top 3 animal protein sources other than whole meat (fish & milk products being the other two). The cranberries are a nice thing to have, too, as a lot of vets believe this helps with urinary tract health as a "likely" UTI preventative.
It is also good that you see a minimum amount of "vitamin supplements" in this food. There are A FEW, but that's expected. Some foods are totally loaded with supplements at the end of the ingredient list, and that tells you that the basic formulation is not of high quality. So this formulation -- with very few supplements -- obviously IS of high quality.
One thing that really jumped out at me on the nutritional analysis was the use of the word "Protein" instead of "Crude Protein." It is very difficult and very expensive to analyze the protein content of every single ingredient (which is how it would have to be done -- analysis of each individual ingredient). So I guess either (1) the company HAS gone to that unbelievable time and expense, which is practically unheard of in the entire animal feed industry, or (2) they're trying to "fudge" things a bit by eliminating the word "crude" to perhaps make their food look better. I can't remember if you legally have to write "crude protein" instead of just "protein." And just as an FYI, "crude protein" is an estimate -- the actual "protein" level is ALWAYS lower than the crude protein percentage listed. But in the end, I'm thinking it's conceivable that a company specializing in organic (and therefore presumably high-quality) food would put all that effort into analyzing for ACTUAL protein. You'd have to call the company to get the answer to that question (is it 21% protein or 21% CRUDE protein?)
All in all, I really think this food is excellent. And I suspect it's expensive, considering the high quality cereal grains, whole beef, and eggs.
I was just re-reading the ingredient list, and something else popped out at me. That is the LACK of any sweeteners or extra energy sources that are"fatty." The sweetener you usually see is dried beet pulp, which is basically sugar. So it's nice that all of the carbs/sugars are coming from whole fruits and veggies and not beet pulp or "pure" sugar like you see in some other foods. Also, other than the beef and eggs, there is a total lack of fat. Extra fat -- usually in the form of poultry fat -- is often added to make the food taste yummy (which makes the dog love it, which makes the owner keep buying it). This food is fantastic because the dog will get what fat it needs from the beef and eggs, and doesn't end up with excess fat sources which are only in the food for flavoring.
Really an excellent food!
