Belcando Horse with potatoes & parsnips

Wet Chunks · completeHigh meatClear label

Horse with potatoes & parsnips
Good
our rating

Our verdict

Is Belcando Horse with potatoes & parsnips a good dog food?

We score it 82/100 (Good). This reflects the ingredient quality, composition and label transparency of the recipe as declared on the label.

Complete wet food in chunks for adult dogs, with horse meat, heart and stomach as the main ingredients.

How we score

Why you might choose it

  • Scores 82, in the top quarter of wet foods we track.
  • Meat makes up an estimated 80% of the dry matter (64% as fed).
  • Prints ingredient percentages on the label.

Why you might not

  • High in fat: 26% fat on a dry-matter basis.

Who is this food for?

Suits

  • Labelled by the manufacturer for adult dogs
  • Grain-free: no grain ingredients listed
  • Single named protein: horse
  • Doesn't list chicken, beef, turkey, lamb, fish, venison, pork, duck as ingredients

Consider something else if:

  • You are limiting fat: 26.2% on a dry-matter basis is in the high band

These points are derived from declared ingredients and analysis, not a substitute for veterinary advice. If your dog has a diagnosed condition, food choice is a medical nutrition decision: speak to your vet. Find foods that fit your dog.

Nutrition and feedingProtein 11% · Fat 5.50%

Typical analysis (as fed)

NutrientAs fed
Protein11%
Fat5.50%
Fibre0.40%
Ash2%
Moisture79%

Additives & feeding info

Feeding and storage

Storage

Once open, store in the fridge for max. 24 hours. Please feed at room temperature.

Feeding guide

Average quantities for feeding adult dogs with normal activity levels are listed in the table shown. Ideal weight 5-10 kg: 200-400g/day; 10-20 kg: 400-800g/day; 20-35 kg: 800-1200g/day; 35-65 kg: 1200-2000g/day.

Additives declared on the label

Nutritional additives

Vitamin D3 200 IU/kg; Vitamin E 50 mg/kg; Manganese (as manganous sulphate monohydrate) 2 mg/kg; Zinc (as zinc sulphate monohydrate) 20 mg/kg; Iodine (as calcium iodate anhydrous) 0.2 mg/kg

Ingredients (12)12 of 12 percentages printed

Estimated composition

  • meat 92.0%
  • carb 4.0%
  • veg 3.0%
  • oil 0.5%
  • supplement 0.5%
#As declaredMatchedLabel readingDeclared %Est. %
114.5% Horse meatHorse Meatmeat · good14.514.5
214.5% heartHeartmeat · good14.514.5
314.5% stomachStomachmeat · medium14.514.5
45% liverLivermeat · good55.0
514.5% lungLungmeat · medium14.514.5
6Horse broth (28.5%)Horse Brothmeat · good28.528.5
7Potatoes (4%)Potatoescarb · medium44.0
8Parsnips (2%)Parsnipsveg · good22.0
9Chia seed (1%)Chia Seedsveg · good11.0
10Safflower oil (0.5%)Safflower Oiloil · good0.50.5
11Egg shells (0.5%)Eggmeat · good0.50.5
12Minerals (0.5%)Vitamins and mineralssupplement · medium0.50.5
  1. 1. 14.5% Horse meat14.5% declared14.5% estimated
    Horse Meat · meat · good
  2. 2. 14.5% heart14.5% declared14.5% estimated
    Heart · meat · good
  3. 3. 14.5% stomach14.5% declared14.5% estimated
    Stomach · meat · medium
  4. 4. 5% liver5% declared5.0% estimated
    Liver · meat · good
  5. 5. 14.5% lung14.5% declared14.5% estimated
    Lung · meat · medium
  6. 6. Horse broth (28.5%)28.5% declared28.5% estimated
    Horse Broth · meat · good
  7. 7. Potatoes (4%)4% declared4.0% estimated
    Potatoes · carb · medium
  8. 8. Parsnips (2%)2% declared2.0% estimated
    Parsnips · veg · good
  9. 9. Chia seed (1%)1% declared1.0% estimated
    Chia Seeds · veg · good
  10. 10. Safflower oil (0.5%)0.5% declared0.5% estimated
    Safflower Oil · oil · good
  11. 11. Egg shells (0.5%)0.5% declared0.5% estimated
    Egg · meat · good
  12. 12. Minerals (0.5%)0.5% declared0.5% estimated
    Vitamins and minerals · supplement · medium

Trust and sourceNo recalls recorded in our database · checked 2026-09-09

Brand and contact: Belcando

Trust and provenance

Recall history
No recalls recorded in our database
Label data last checked
2026-09-09
Scored with
Model v3 (methodology)
Product page
www.belcando.com

Recall history is presentation-only and never affects the score. Dates are when we recorded the data, not when the manufacturer last changed the recipe.

External platform ratings are not scores for this individual recipe.

10 reviews on this product · 5.0/5

Spotted a mistake in this listing? Report it here and we'll take a look.

Score details and methodologyCalculations, history and evidence

Recipe: how the 1-100 score is calculated

Why this score?

The overall score for this recipe is 82 out of 100. The meat content contributed +8.3 points, while the overall quality of the ingredient list added +6.8 points. Being labelled nutritionally complete gave the recipe +2.3 points, and printing percentages for most of the recipe provided a further +1 points.

Scored with model v3 on 2026-10-25. Each component is the feature value for this product multiplied by the model's published coefficient.

ComponentInputCoefficientContribution
Base score-30.909+30.91
Average ingredient quality0.79.191+6.84
Meat share of dry matter86.4%0.096+8.30
Carb share of dry matter4.3%-0.115-0.50
Oil share of dry matter2.1%-0.092-0.20
Vegetable share of dry matter5.2%-0.005-0.03
Supplement share of dry matter2.0%-0.012-0.02
Complete dietyes2.294+2.29
High meat (30%+ of dry matter)yes0.707+0.71
Processing multiplier1.0033.786+33.79
Processing: Wet Chunksyes-0.672-0.67
Show all 40 components
ComponentInputCoefficientContribution
Base score-30.909+30.91
Average ingredient quality0.79.191+6.84
Meat share of dry matter86.4%0.096+8.30
Carb share of dry matter4.3%-0.115-0.50
Oil share of dry matter2.1%-0.092-0.20
Vegetable share of dry matter5.2%-0.005-0.03
Additive share of dry matter0.0%0.163+0.00
Supplement share of dry matter2.0%-0.012-0.02
Other share of dry matter0.0%-0.375+0.00
Unrecognised share of dry matter0.0%-0.027+0.00
Recipe graded poor0.0%-0.065+0.00
Poor-quality meat in recipe0.0%-0.179+0.00
Number of poor ingredients0-0.876+0.00
Largest single poor ingredient0.0%0.060+0.00
Undeclared quantities0.0%-0.106+0.00
Prints ingredient percentagesno0.000+0.00
Complete dietyes2.294+2.29
Frozen or chilled freshno0.000+0.00
High meat (30%+ of dry matter)yes0.707+0.71
Low meat (under 10% of dry matter)no-3.158+0.00
High carb and low meatno-1.180+0.00
Meat share × printed percentages0.00.000+0.00
Meat share × fresh0.00.000+0.00
Fresh × high meat0.011.084+0.00
Additive penalty0.000.222+0.00
Processing multiplier1.0033.786+33.79
Processing: Rawno-0.054+0.00
Processing: Fresh Chilledno-2.354+0.00
Processing: Fresh Frozenno-2.354+0.00
Processing: Fresh Refrigeratedno0.000+0.00
Processing: Fresh Shelfno-0.672+0.00
Processing: Dry Freeze Driedno6.629+0.00
Processing: Dry Air Driedno6.331+0.00
Processing: Dry Cold Pressedno-6.713+0.00
Processing: Dry Bakedno-6.713+0.00
Processing: Dry Extrudedno-6.713+0.00
Processing: Dry Semi Moistno-6.174+0.00
Processing: Dry Mueslino-10.146+0.00
Processing: Wet Pateno-0.672+0.00
Processing: Wet Chunksyes-0.672-0.67
Processing-type offset
-0.08
Additives declared on label
+1 transparency bonus
Subtotal
82.3
Final score
82/100

Contributions are rounded to two decimals, so they may not sum exactly to the subtotal. The full coefficient table is published on the methodology page.

Score history across model versions

The score shown above is always computed with the latest published model. Earlier scores are kept for the record and are never edited or deleted; a scoring change ships as a new model version with a public write-up on the methodology page.

ModelScore
v382/100current
v282/100
v180/100
v1.982/100
Nutritional: declared analysis vs reference ranges

How the declared analysis compares with FEDIAF reference ranges for adult dogs. The label prints as-fed values; we convert to a dry-matter basis before scoring, and the bands are dry-matter ranges. Scores rise to 100 at the band midpoint: the reference is adequacy, not maximisation. Nutrients with a published upper limit taper again above it; fat is policed through calorie density rather than a direct penalty.

NutrientAs fed (label)Dry matter (scored)Score
Protein1152.4 (band 18 to 40%)100
Fat5.526.2 (band 5.5 to 20%)100
Fibre0.41.9 (band 0.5 to 5%)88.7

Scored over 3 declared nutrients (combined weight 50); undeclared nutrients do not affect the score.

Declared fortification: 5 nutritional additives on the label
  • Vitamin D3 200 IU/kg
  • Vitamin E 50 mg/kg
  • Manganese (as manganous sulphate monohydrate) 2 mg/kg
  • Zinc (as zinc sulphate monohydrate) 20 mg/kg
  • Iodine (as calcium iodate anhydrous) 0.2 mg/kg

Medium confidence: the full five-part analysis is on file; where moisture was not declared it was estimated from the food type.

This measures agreement with published reference ranges, not suitability for an individual dog. For medical conditions, follow veterinary guidance.

Transparency: what the label discloses

How much the manufacturer discloses, measured against the FEDIAF Code of Good Labelling Practice and Regulation 767/2009. Mandatory items dominate the weighting.

ItemPoints
✓ Ingredient list on the label (mandatory)10/10
✓ Printed percentages on the label (100% of the recipe mass) (voluntary)20/20
✓ Analytical constituents declared (mandatory)15/15
✓ Additives declared (mandatory)5/10
✗ Energy value declared (voluntary) - not on file0/5
✓ Complete/complementary designation (mandatory)5/5
✓ Feeding guidance given (mandatory)10/10
✓ Manufacturer identity and address (mandatory)5/10
✓ Country of manufacture stated (voluntary)10/10
✗ Batch and date labelling (mandatory) - not on file0/5

Capped at 60: mandatory items missing (Batch and date labelling).

Safety: recall history

Recall and safety-notice history, time-decayed. This dimension is shown alongside the score and never feeds the headline number.

No recalls recorded in our database.

See all current recalls we track.

Evidence: what the brand claims, and what supports it

The claims made on the pack and product page, checked against the declared label. We record claims as stated; "consistent" means our stored label data supports the claim, "contradicted" means it conflicts with it. Functional claims are recorded but never scored.

100/100 · moderate — 2 checkable claims: 2 consistent, 0 contradicted.

Consistent with the label

  • "Only one source of animal protein" — supported by the declared single protein data.
  • "No grain formula" — supported by the declared grain-free data.

1 further claim on file that we cannot check against the label.

Moderate: every checkable claim is consistent with the declared label.

ClaimTypeCheckSubstantiation
Ideal for sensitive dogs or those with food intolerances (on page)Functionalnot checkableManufacturer assertion
Only one source of animal protein (on page)ContentconsistentManufacturer assertion
No grain formula (on page)Free-fromconsistentManufacturer assertion

The full scoring method is published. See the methodology for exactly how the headline score and each dimension are calculated.

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