Tesco Complete & Balanced Nutrition Senior Dry

Dry Extruded · completeClear label

20out of 100

Poor

our rating

Our verdict

Is Tesco Complete & Balanced Nutrition Senior Dry a good dog food?

We score it 20/100 (Poor). The main reasons are set out in "Why you might not" below, and every step of the calculation is shown under "How we calculated this score".

Complete extruded dry food for senior dogs, with cereals, maize and meat and animal derivatives as the main ingredients.

How we score

88% of this recipe has no printed percentage. Estimated shares are model estimates, not label facts.

Why you might choose it

Prints ingredient percentages on the label.
Low in fat for its format: 8% fat on a dry-matter basis.
Nutritionally complete: formulated to be fed as the whole diet.

Why you might not

7 poor-graded ingredients make up about 66% of the recipe.
Meat makes up an estimated 6% of the dry matter (15% as fed); carbohydrates dominate.
Its additive load costs about 6 points in the rating.

Who is this food for?

Suits

Labelled by the manufacturer for senior dogs
Doesn't list beef, turkey, lamb, fish, venison, pork, duck as ingredients

Consider something else if:

Your dog avoids chicken: the label lists chicken
Your dog avoids grain: the label lists cereals

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 21% · Fat 7.50%

Typical analysis (as fed)

Nutrient	As fed
Protein	21%
Fat	7.50%
Fibre	3.50%
Ash	8%
Moisture	8%
Omega-3 fatty acids	0.13%
Omega-6 fatty acids	1.70%
Calcium	1.70%

Additives & feeding info

No additives recorded yet.

Ingredients (13)88% of the recipe is estimated

Estimated composition

carb 25.0%
additive 21.6%
supplement 15.3%
meat 14.8%
other 10.2%
oil 9.1%
veg 4.0%

#	As declared	Matched	Label reading	Declared %	Est. %
1	Cereals	Cereals	carb · poor	-	11.4
2	4% Maize in the Yellow Components	Maize / Corn	carb · medium	4	4.0
3	Meat and Animal Derivatives	Meat and Animal Derivatives	meat · poor	-	10.8
4	4% Chicken in the Brown Components	Chicken	meat · medium	4	4.0
5	Derivatives of Vegetable Origin	Vegetable By-Products	other · poor	-	10.2
6	Vegetable Protein Extracts	Vegetable protein extracts	carb · poor	-	9.7
7	Oils and Fats	Oils and Fats	oil · poor	-	9.1
8	Various Sugars	Sugars	additive · poor	-	8.5
9	Minerals	Vitamins and minerals	supplement · medium	-	7.9
10	4% Vegetables in the Brown Components	Vegetables	veg · medium	4	4.0
11	Yeasts	Yeast	supplement · good	-	7.4
12	Colourants	Artificial colourings	additive · poor	-	6.8
13	Preservatives	Preservatives	additive · medium	-	6.2

1. Cereals11.4% estimated
Cereals · carb · poor
2. 4% Maize in the Yellow Components4% declared4.0% estimated
Maize / Corn · carb · medium
3. Meat and Animal Derivatives10.8% estimated
Meat and Animal Derivatives · meat · poor
4. 4% Chicken in the Brown Components4% declared4.0% estimated
Chicken · meat · medium
5. Derivatives of Vegetable Origin10.2% estimated
Vegetable By-Products · other · poor
6. Vegetable Protein Extracts9.7% estimated
Vegetable protein extracts · carb · poor
7. Oils and Fats9.1% estimated
Oils and Fats · oil · poor
8. Various Sugars8.5% estimated
Sugars · additive · poor
9. Minerals7.9% estimated
Vitamins and minerals · supplement · medium
10. 4% Vegetables in the Brown Components4% declared4.0% estimated
Vegetables · veg · medium
11. Yeasts7.4% estimated
Yeast · supplement · good
12. Colourants6.8% estimated
Artificial colourings · additive · poor
13. Preservatives6.2% estimated
Preservatives · additive · medium

Trust and sourceNo recalls recorded in our database · checked 2026-09-13

Brand and contact: Tesco

Tesco

Website: https://www.tesco.com/groceries/en-GB/shop/pet-food/dog-food

Trust and provenance

Recall history: No recalls recorded in our database
Label data last checked: 2026-09-13
Scored with: Model v3 (methodology)
Product page: www.tesco.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.

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?

This recipe achieves an overall score of 20 out of 100 based on several key factors. Ingredients without printed percentages contributed -9.3, while the processing format added -6.7 to the total. Additionally, the additive load contributed -6.3, and the additives in the recipe provided +4.3.

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

Component	Input	Coefficient	Contribution
Base score	-	30.909	+30.91
Average ingredient quality	-0.5	9.191	-4.14
Meat share of dry matter	1.5%	0.096	+0.14
Carb share of dry matter	29.6%	-0.115	-3.40
Oil share of dry matter	12.1%	-0.092	-1.11
Additive share of dry matter	26.1%	0.163	+4.25
Supplement share of dry matter	19.0%	-0.012	-0.23
Other share of dry matter	6.9%	-0.375	-2.57
Recipe graded poor	66.4%	-0.065	-4.32
Poor-quality meat in recipe	10.8%	-0.179	-1.93
Number of poor ingredients	7	-0.876	-6.13
Largest single poor ingredient	11.4%	0.060	+0.68
Undeclared quantities	88.0%	-0.106	-9.29
Low meat (under 10% of dry matter)	yes	-3.158	-3.16
Additive penalty	-28.21	0.222	-6.26
Processing multiplier	0.98	33.786	+33.11
Processing: Dry Extruded	yes	-6.713	-6.71

Show all 40 components

Component	Input	Coefficient	Contribution
Base score	-	30.909	+30.91
Average ingredient quality	-0.5	9.191	-4.14
Meat share of dry matter	1.5%	0.096	+0.14
Carb share of dry matter	29.6%	-0.115	-3.40
Oil share of dry matter	12.1%	-0.092	-1.11
Vegetable share of dry matter	0.8%	-0.005	-0.00
Additive share of dry matter	26.1%	0.163	+4.25
Supplement share of dry matter	19.0%	-0.012	-0.23
Other share of dry matter	6.9%	-0.375	-2.57
Unrecognised share of dry matter	0.0%	-0.027	+0.00
Recipe graded poor	66.4%	-0.065	-4.32
Poor-quality meat in recipe	10.8%	-0.179	-1.93
Number of poor ingredients	7	-0.876	-6.13
Largest single poor ingredient	11.4%	0.060	+0.68
Undeclared quantities	88.0%	-0.106	-9.29
Prints ingredient percentages	no	0.000	+0.00
Complete diet	no	2.294	+0.00
Frozen or chilled fresh	no	0.000	+0.00
High meat (30%+ of dry matter)	no	0.707	+0.00
Low meat (under 10% of dry matter)	yes	-3.158	-3.16
High carb and low meat	no	-1.180	+0.00
Meat share × printed percentages	0.0	0.000	+0.00
Meat share × fresh	0.0	0.000	+0.00
Fresh × high meat	0.0	11.084	+0.00
Additive penalty	-28.21	0.222	-6.26
Processing multiplier	0.98	33.786	+33.11
Processing: Raw	no	-0.054	+0.00
Processing: Fresh Chilled	no	-2.354	+0.00
Processing: Fresh Frozen	no	-2.354	+0.00
Processing: Fresh Refrigerated	no	0.000	+0.00
Processing: Fresh Shelf	no	-0.672	+0.00
Processing: Dry Freeze Dried	no	6.629	+0.00
Processing: Dry Air Dried	no	6.331	+0.00
Processing: Dry Cold Pressed	no	-6.713	+0.00
Processing: Dry Baked	no	-6.713	+0.00
Processing: Dry Extruded	yes	-6.713	-6.71
Processing: Dry Semi Moist	no	-6.174	+0.00
Processing: Dry Muesli	no	-10.146	+0.00
Processing: Wet Pate	no	-0.672	+0.00
Processing: Wet Chunks	no	-0.672	+0.00

Processing-type offset: +0.02
Subtotal: 19.8
Final score: 20/100

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.

Model	Score
v3	20/100	current
v2	22/100
v1	22/100
v1.9	23/100

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.

Nutrient	As fed (label)	Dry matter (scored)	Score
Protein	21	22.8 (band 18 to 40%)	83.2
Fat	7.5	8.2 (band 5.5 to 20%)	81
Fibre	3.5	3.8 (band 0.5 to 5%)	100
Calcium	1.7	1.8 (band 0.5 to 2.5%)	100
Omega fatty acids (omega-6 and omega-3)	-	-	100

Omega fatty acids (omega-6 and omega-3): scored as the mean of its declared components (omega-6 100). The FEDIAF minimum for omega-6 is linoleic acid specifically.

Scored over 5 declared nutrients (combined weight 70); undeclared nutrients do not affect the score.

No nutritional additives section declared on the label.

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.

Item	Points
✓ Ingredient list on the label (mandatory)	10/10
✓ Printed percentages on the label (12% of the recipe mass) (voluntary)	2.4/20
✓ Analytical constituents declared (mandatory)	15/15
✗ Additives declared (mandatory) - not on file	0/10
✗ Energy value declared (voluntary) - not on file	0/5
✓ Complete/complementary designation (mandatory)	5/5
✗ Feeding guidance given (mandatory) - not on file	0/10
✓ Manufacturer identity and address (mandatory)	5/10
✓ Country of manufacture stated (voluntary)	10/10
✗ Batch and date labelling (mandatory) - not on file	0/5