Meat and Animal Derivatives

meat ingredient

Poor

What is it?

Meat and Animal Derivatives is a meat ingredient. Graded poor: cheap, vague or of questionable value, so it drags a product’s score down.

At a glance

Base score
-1 (from −1 to 1; higher is better)
Found in
307 products

Products containing meat and animal derivatives

Results reflect the latest label we hold for each product, not a live check of today's recipe. Open a product to see its source and last-checked date.

Best Pearls No. 04 Kaninchen & Leber43
Dr. Clauder's · Wet ChunksClear label
Terrine chien croissance agneau43
Nutrivet · Wet PateHigh meatClear label
i/d Stress Mini Stew for Dogs42
Hill's · Wet ChunksClear label
Chicken & Liver42
Calibra · Wet PateClear label
Prescription Diet d/d Food Sensitivities Dry Dog Food with Duck & Rice42
Hill's · Dry ExtrudedClear label
i/d Low Fat Digestive Care Stew with Chicken & Vegetables41
Hill's · Wet ChunksHigh meatClear label
DUCK MINI DELIGHTStreat
Essential FoodsHigh meat
Natures Best Beef Adult Dog Food41
Wilko · Wet PateClear label
d/d Food Sensitivities Wet Dog Food Duck Can41
Hill's · Wet Pate
Snacker Mixtraytreat
meraHigh meatClear labelFull label
Snacker Mixtraytreat
meraHigh meatClear labelFull label
Snacker Mixtraytreat
meraHigh meatClear labelFull label

Common questions about meat and animal derivatives

Is Meat and Animal Derivatives good for dogs?

We grade it as a poor ingredient: typically cheap, vague or of questionable nutritional value, so it drags a product’s score down. One poor ingredient does not make a food bad on its own, but a recipe built from several usually scores low.

What is the problem with "meat and animal derivatives"?

It is the vaguest meat declaration allowed on a UK label. The phrase covers any warm-blooded land animal and any part of it, and the mix can change batch to batch without the label changing. A named meat (chicken, beef, lamb) tells you exactly what your dog is eating; this phrase tells you almost nothing, so transparency-minded buyers tend to prefer named meats.

Does "meat and animal derivatives" mean the food contains beaks and hooves?

Not necessarily. Derivatives can be decent cuts as well as less glamorous ones; the problem is that the label does not say. The phrase is common in budget foods because it lets manufacturers buy whatever is cheapest each week. We cannot tell you what is inside, and neither can the manufacturer from that label alone, which is the point.

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How many UK dog foods contain meat and animal derivatives?

307 UK products list meat and animal derivatives as an ingredient in our database. The full list is shown above, sorted by rating.

How does Open Dog Food grade meat and animal derivatives?

We grade it poor, our lowest grade, used for cheap, vague or low-value ingredients. Every ingredient is converted to its dry-matter share and scored from our glossary before a recipe gets its 1-100 rating; the full method is on our methodology page.