A recent study was the first to assess the mineral composition of a range of dry and wet pet foods described as ‘complete’ and which are available to customers in the UK.
USA – Heavy Metals in Pet Food
Minerals include heavy metals. I recently wrote an article about the heavy metal content in American pet food. That article, too, was based upon a study and the findings were arguably shocking. Heavy metals are present at too high a level for the food to be safe according to many. This is because the regulations are lax and the standards too low.
It begged the question as to what the standards were like in the UK. The UK is still part of the European Union. Recommended maximum levels of undesirable or heavy elements such as arsenic, cadmium, mercury and lead, in pet food is regulated by the EU directive 2002/32/EC. It is likely that this regulation will be incorporated into UK law after UK leave the European Union.
EU Directive on Mineral Levels in Pet Food
UK Pet Foods Non-compliant
I have to cut to the chase because the study is extensive. It would bore readers. In conclusion the study found that a majority of the wet and dry pet foods tested were non-compliant with current European recommendations. To quote:
“Many had either insufficient, excessive or inappropriate balance of minerals which, if fed exclusively for a long period of time, could underpin a host of clinical diseases in dogs and cats including skeletal, neurological, or dermatological disease. Furthermore, foods with relatively high levels of fish or fish derivatives also had high levels of undesirable metal elements such as arsenic… which accumulate in internal organs [causing disease].”
Long Term – Same Food
An important point is that a lot of cat and dog owners feed their pets the same sort of food i.e. the same brand all the time. They don’t mix it up. Therefore if that particular brand of food is non-compliant and high in heavy metals there is obviously a greater chance of the pet being poisoned. A number of surveys indicate that up to 50% of dog owners and about 20% of cat owners supplement pet food with treats. However these treats are rarely balanced diets.
Level on Non-compliance
Apparently, 94% of wet cat foods are non-compliant with EU guidelines and 61% of dry cat food were non-compliant. These are very high percentages and if pets are fed certain foods over a long period of time it could impact their health.
UK No Better Than USA
The question I have in my mind is whether the EU regulations are tighter than American regulations. The study I’m referring to states that the EU guidelines are largely based upon the original National Research Council recommendations in the USA. However, for toxic elements such as arsenic, mercury, cadmium and lead EU regulations are in place under the EU directive mentioned above.
My personal thoughts about this is that the EU guidelines are good and therefore, without checking, tighter than those present in America. However, as mentioned, UK pet food is non-compliant with EU standards on mineral composition. Therefore it is impossible to state that the position regarding heavy metals in pet food is better in the UK than in the USA.
I have the same problem. I buy manufactured cat food but don’t like it. It concerns me. Making raw is tricky. I’d like to make raw. Thanks for commenting Jane. Hope you are well.
Thank you for writing this Michael. It is a terrible state of affairs when the laws are there, but no one bothers to comply. I really do believe that once Brexit happens our companion & livestock animals’ lives will be rendered much, much worse.
Right now I feel as if I am between a rock & a hard place with cat foods.
Just one of my two cats will eat the ready made raw food. The othe r puss will not recognise raw, as food.
I t really is a confounding dilemma when you are trying to do your best, and the lazy, greedy, manufacturers & vets are only there to strip your wallet and eventually poison your companion animal.
I include vets in this because it is vets who develop prescription foods when working in R & D in the pet food industry and guilt trip customers into buying the poisonous garbage.
God that is horrible. Poor dog. My life experience tells me that the pet food manufacturers are run by cynical men in suits whose sole objective is profit and if the products they make are not the best for cat health they don’t care. They do the minimum for standards to maximise profit.
I hope that more people realize that pet food is causing many of the health issues and diseases.
I met a woman yesterday with a tiny Pomeranian mix, who had scratched a large part of his chest raw. I asked what she was feeding him, and she said she switched to Science Diet a few months ago. I said that he may have an allergic reaction to something in the food. She had no idea about this possibility.
I also suggested coconut oil for his skin, and she didn’t know anything about the benefits.
I asked her to keep in touch, and let me know how he’s doing.