How do I read the dog food ingredient list?
Like packaged food for people, pet food must list ingredients by weight, starting with the heaviest. But if the first ingredient is a type of meat, keep in mind that meat is about 75% water, according to the U.S. Food and Drug Administration. Without that water weight, the meat probably would fall lower on the ingredient list. Meat “meals” such as chicken meal or meat and bone meal are different; most of the water and fat have been removed, which concentrates the animal protein.
