Is Acana Cat Food Worth It? A Deep Dive into Its Ingredients, Nutrition, and Palatability

Is Acana Cat Food Worth It? A Deep Dive into Its Ingredients, Nutrition, and Palatability

As more and more people choose to keep cats, the cat food market has become increasingly vibrant. A wide range of cat food brands, formulas, and prices are available, making it overwhelming to choose. How to select a cat food that is both safe and nutritious, and that your cat will love, has become a headache for every cat owner.

Today, we take Acana cat food as an example, delve into its ingredients, nutritional value, and palatability, and compare it with two other cat foods at the same price point to help you determine whether Acana cat food is worth buying.

PART 1: How to choose a quality cat food?

First, we need to define what a quality cat food is.

Many cat food brands claim to meet AAFCO (Association of American Feed Control Officials) standards to demonstrate their high quality. So what exactly is AAFCO?

AAFCO is a non-profit organization made up of volunteer members from various levels of government agencies in the United States. Its primary responsibilities are to develop and publish nutritional standards for animal feed and to regulate the sale and distribution of animal feed and drugs.

In 2021, AAFCO released the latest version of its cat food nutrient table, which includes 47 nutrient components and sets minimum and maximum levels for each component. These nutrients mainly include:

Basic nutritional indicators: protein, fat, oil, etc.
Amino acids: arginine, histidine, isoleucine, leucine, lysine, methionine, alanine, threonine, tryptophan, etc.
Minerals: calcium, phosphorus, potassium, sodium, chloride, magnesium, iron, copper, manganese, zinc, iodine, and selenium, etc.
Vitamins: Vitamin A, Vitamin D3, Vitamin E, Vitamin K3, Vitamin B1, Vitamin B2, Vitamin B6, Vitamin B12, Biotin, Folic acid, Niacin, Pantothenic acid, Choline, etc.

Although China's pet food industry is relatively new, there are also relevant standards. The State Administration for Quality Supervision, Inspection and Quarantine and the Standardization Administration of China issued the "Full-price Pet Food Cat Food (GB/T31217-2014)" on September 3, 2014, as a recommended national standard.

However, this standard requires relatively fewer data items, only 8 basic nutritional indicators and 9 health indicators, and the index data is relatively loose compared to AAFCO standards. For example, AAFCO requires a minimum crude protein content of 26% for adult cat food, while the national standard is 25%.

In general, whether it meets AAFCO or the national standard, it only represents that a cat food meets basic quality standards. We can use them to grasp the "lower limit" of a cat food. Choosing cat food that meets these two standards will not go wrong.

Currently, the nutrient data of quality cat food is generally higher than these two standards.

Cats are carnivores and need enough protein to meet their growth and development needs. The three golden standards for quality cat food now known in the industry are: protein above 40%, fat below 20%, and carbohydrates below 20%.

PART 2: Teach you to read the ingredient list by hand

After understanding the nutrient indicators of cat food, we also need to learn how to read the ingredient list. Because the ingredient list often hides some “secrets” that manufacturers don't want you to see.

Next, we will use Acana Farm Feast Chicken cat food (hereinafter referred to as Acana) as an example to analyze its ingredient list.

Acana

(Fresh boneless chicken meat (9%), fresh turkey (9%), fresh chicken giblets (liver, heart, kidney, and neck) (9%), chicken meal (8%), turkey meal (8%), whole herring meal, whole green peas, whole red lentils (4%), whole green lentils, whole chickpeas, whole yellow peas, cod oil (2%), alfalfa meal, dehydrated chicken cartilage (1%), kelp, fresh pumpkin, fresh butternut squash, fresh parsnips, fresh kale, fresh spinach, fresh mustard greens, fresh turnip, fresh red apple, fresh pears, frozen blueberries, frozen cranberries, dried brewer's yeast, flaxseed, calcium carbonate, potassium chloride, salt, dicalcium phosphate, taurine, DL-methionine, vitamin E supplement, niacin, iron proteinate, calcium pantothenate, zinc sulfate, manganese sulfate, biotin, copper sulfate, vitamin A supplement, vitamin D3 supplement, vitamin B12 supplement, folic acid, sodium selenite, riboflavin, choline chloride, calcium iodate)

At first glance, the ingredient list of Acana is very rich, including various meats, fish, vegetables, and fruits. But does this mean that Acana is necessarily a quality cat food?

Here are a few things to focus on:

1. Protein content and source: The higher the protein content in cat food, the better, and these proteins should ideally be provided by fresh meat. Acana's ingredient list includes a higher proportion of fresh chicken, fresh turkey, and fresh chicken giblets, but it also includes chicken meal and turkey meal.

2. Addition of legumes: Some cat foods add legumes as a source of plant-based protein to increase protein content. Acana's ingredient list contains peas, red lentils, and yellow peas. While legumes can supplement protein, they can cause digestive problems or allergies in some cats.

3. The meaning of "fresh": The term "fresh" needs to be carefully considered. Our understanding of fresh turkey meat and fresh fish is that the animals are sent directly to the feed mill from the slaughterhouse. However, Acana's ingredient list does not specify the source of fresh ingredients. Have these meats been frozen for a long time? If these meats have been in the refrigerator for a long time, will it affect their freshness and nutritional value?

4. Ingredient list order: According to food regulations, the order of the ingredient list must be in descending order of the actual content of the ingredients. Acana's ingredient list disperses legumes in different positions, but the actual overall proportion is high.

PART 3: How is the quality of cat food? The test report speaks for itself

In addition to analyzing the ingredient list, we also need to refer to the test reports of third-party testing institutions to evaluate the nutritional value and safety of cat food.

We sent Acana, Orijen 无麸鸡猫粮, and 灵翠烤高肉猫粮 to the third-party testing agency CTI Huace and tested them according to the two cat food standard systems of AAFCO's dry matter nutrient index and the national cat food index.

Here are the test results:

Crude protein content: The crude protein content of all three cat foods is above 40%, with 灵翠 having the highest crude protein content at over 44%.
AAFCO nutritional indicators: Acana and Orijen 无麸鸡 had subpar niacin content, below AAFCO standards. 灵翠's niacin index, however, met the standard.
Histamine content: Acana and Orijen had higher histamine content, mainly because these two cat foods contain deep-sea fish as ingredients, and the freshness of these fish may be questionable.
Zinc content: The zinc content of Acana and Orijen was slightly above the standard, but still within the safe range.

Overall, the nutrient data of the three cat foods is quite good, but there are still some details worth noting. 灵翠 has a more outstanding performance in various indicators.

PART 4: Cats love to eat is the kingly way

Palatability is also an important indicator when buying cat food. If your cat doesn't like to eat, it's a waste to buy the best cat food.

To test the palatability of the three cat foods, we asked two cats to try them.

The results showed that both 灵翠 and Acana had good palatability, especially 灵翠, which both cats liked very much. Orijen's palatability was more average.

Conclusion:

A quality cat food should have the following characteristics:

High protein, low carbohydrate
Single source of animal protein
Balanced addition of various nutrients
Safety indicators are qualified
Good palatability

Overall, 灵翠烤高肉猫粮 excels in single source of animal protein, high protein content, balanced nutrient elements, and excellent palatability.

If you're looking for a quality cat food and have a good budget, you can consider trying 灵翠烤高肉.

Summary of experience:

Choosing cat food is a process that requires carefulness and meticulousness. Don't be fooled by fancy packaging and advertising slogans, carefully read the ingredient list, refer to third-party test reports, and observe your cat's preferences.

Finally, hope this article will help you find a quality cat food that is right for your cat!

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