How to choose cat food

When I first became a cat mom, I was very lost, and unsure about what to feed Mal. It seemed like there were thousands of brands, all claiming to be the best.

I’m a health-conscious person, I do my best to eat well and keep in shape, and I want the same for my kitty baby. I didn’t want to feed her something that might lead to health issues down the road or, worse, shorten her life. I wanted to know how to choose cat food, what makes a good cat food, and what cat food is the best quality.

I reached out to my cat owner friends for their recommendations on brands, and they suggested looking for the term “complete and balanced” on the packaging.

I asked vets the same question. They said to go with the big and popular brands because tend to be more reliable.

In reality, there are lots of brands in the market with large marketing budgets, whose goal is to get you to purchase their food—It’s easy to get lost. I have bought and fed my cats several different brands of cat food, only to realize it’s equivalent to “KFC” for cats.

After extensive research and some trial and errors with my cats, here’s what I’ve learnt—let’s dive in!

Disclaimer: The information provided in this article is intended for general informational purposes only and is not a substitute for professional veterinary advice. Healthy Kitty Care is not liable for any changes made or their impact on your pet’s health. Always consult with a qualified veterinarian before making significant changes to your cat’s diet to ensure their well-being.

Table of Contents

What makes a good cat food

The nutritional adequacy statement

The first thing to look for when choosing cat food is the statement that the food is formulated to meet the nutritional needs established by the AAFCO. This would usually be shown on the food packaging, or sometimes on their website.

The AAFCO stands for The Association of American Feed Control Officials, they set nutritional standards for pet foods in the U.S.

The statement to look for comes in 3 variations:

[Brand name] is formulated to meet the nutritional levels established by the AAFCO Cat Food Nutrient Profiles for [life stage].
Animal feeding tests using AAFCO procedures substantiate that [brand name] provides complete and balanced nutrition for [life stage].
[Brand name] provides complete and balanced nutrition for [life stage] and is comparable to a product which has been substantiated using AAFCO feeding tests.

If a cat food label says it meets AAFCO standards, it means the food is nutritionally balanced for your cat’s life stage. This is important because you want to make sure that your cat is getting all the nutrients they need to stay healthy.

Reading the ingredients and nutritional label

Finding the nutritional adequacy statement on the food packaging isn’t sufficient to pick the most nutritional food for your cat. The breakdown of ingredients and nutrients matters a lot as well.

To know what ingredients were used in making the food and the breakdown of the nutrients, you can read the nutritional label, which will be on the food packaging and / or the brand’s website.

Ingredients are listed in descending order according to their weight. So the first ingredient accounts for the most weight in the product. You’re looking for the first few ingredients to be high-quality proteins like chicken, or fish rather than carbohydrates like wheat, rice, maize.

Cats are obligate carnivores, meaning their diet should be primarily meat-based¹. Carbohydrates should be minimal because cats do not require them for energy as humans do.

The AAFCO recommends the following for a healthy adult cat based on a dry matter (moisture-free) basis²:

Crude protein: At least 26%
Crude Fat: At least 9%

There are of course other nutrients like minerals and vitamins to consider, but in general, I try to ensure that the food I’m giving my cats is high in protein and low in carbohydrates, and worry less about the other nutrients.

Take note of calories

When choosing cat food, it’s important to take note of the caloric measurements of the food. Overfeeding your cat, even with high-quality food, can lead to obesity, which can lead to a host of health issues.

You want to ensure that you are feeding your cat an optimal amount of calories to maintain a healthy weight. Here’s a guide on determining how much to feed a cat.

How to choose best cat food

To pick the best food for your cat, do the following:

Look for the nutritional adequacy statement on the food packaging (scanning for the term “AAFCO”), and then read the entire statement to make sure that it says something to the effect of the food being made following the nutritional levels established by the AAFCO.
Read the sources of ingredients and make sure that the first few ingredients listed are protein sources.
Read the nutritional label
- Make sure that the crude protein content is more than 26% (the higher the better in general).
- Make sure that the crude fat content is more than 9%.

Bad vs good cat food

List of ingredients

Let’s look at the ingredients list for a lower quality wet cat food. Notice how wheat gluten is the third ingredient, and soy flour is the sixth ingredient?

Now let’s compare that with the ingredient list for a quality wet cat food. Notice how there are no grains listed in the ingredients.

Nutritional label

And here’s the nutritional label for a good quality wet cat food.

Wait a minute… the protein % is 10%, not the recommended 26%, how is that good?

The nutritional label is for a particular brand of wet cat food, whereas the recommendations are on a moisture-free basis. So let’s try to calculate the crude protein level on a dry matter basis³:

Dry matter = 100 – 78 (moisture) = 22
Protein level on a dry matter basis = 10 (crude protein listed) / 22 (dry matter) * 100 = 45.45%

45% is of course much higher than the recommended amount of 26% of protein.

Note that you’d have to do something similar for dry food as well because kibble will often contain a percentage of moisture as well.

Hopefully this article helps you in deciding what food to get for your cats! This is a basic guideline on choosing cat food for healthy adult cats. When in doubt, always seek the advice from a vet.

References

[1] Veterinary Practice. (n.d.). The cat as a carnivore: Proteins, carbohydrates, and beyond. Retrieved August 27, 2024, from https://www.veterinary-practice.com/article/the-cat-as-a-carnivore-proteins-carbohydrates-and-beyond

[2] Association of American Feed Control Officials. (2015). Proposed revisions to AAFCO nutrient profiles. Retrieved August 27, 2024, from https://www.aafco.org/wp-content/uploads/2023/01/Model_Bills_and_Regulations_Agenda_Midyear_2015_Final_Attachment_A.__Proposed_revisions_to_AAFCO_Nutrient_Profiles_PFC_Final_070214.pdf

[3] U.S. Food and Drug Administration. (n.d.). Complete and balanced pet food. Retrieved August 27, 2024, from https://www.fda.gov/animal-veterinary/animal-health-literacy/complete-and-balanced-pet-food