Is Realdogfood Grain Free a good dog food?
We score it 51/100 (Average). This reflects the ingredient quality, composition and label transparency of the recipe as declared on the label.
Why this score?
This food achieves an overall score of 51 out of 100. Ingredients without printed percentages change the score by -10.6. Conversely, the overall quality of the ingredient list adds +6.9. Additionally, the processing format adjusts the tally by -6.7, and the additive load contributes -4.2.
100% of this recipe has no printed percentage. Estimated shares are model estimates, not label facts.
- Recipe51
- NutritionalNot recorded
- Transparency45
- Safety100
- Evidencemoderate100
The Recipe score measures how attractive and transparent the declared ingredient list is. It is not, by itself, proof that the food is nutritionally appropriate for long-term feeding. The Nutritional and Evidence scores measure what we can verify towards that stronger claim.
Why you might choose it
- Single named animal protein: fish.
- Doesn't list grain ingredients.
- Nutritionally complete: formulated to be fed as the whole diet.
Why you might not
- No analytical breakdown is published.
- 100% of the recipe mass has no printed percentage, so the exact split cannot be verified.
- Its additive load costs about 4 points in the rating.
Estimated composition
Typical analysis (as fed)
No analysis recorded yet.
Dry matter basis
Additives & feeding info
Technological additives
Rosemary, citric acid (stabilisers in tallow)
Storage
Store in a cool dry place to guarantee a 12 month shelf life.
Feeding guide
1 cup / 100grams of Real Dog Food per 10kg body weight. Small-medium dog ~9kg/30 days; medium-large ~18kg/30 days.
Reviews
26 reviews on this product · 4.8/5
Who is this food for?
Suits
- Labelled by the manufacturer for all lifestages
- Labelling or feeding guide is aimed at medium dogs
- Grain-free: no grain ingredients listed
- Single named protein: fish
- Doesn't list chicken, beef, turkey, lamb, venison, pork, duck as ingredients
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. Use the homepage filter to find foods that fit your dog.
Ingredients (13)
| # | As declared | Matched | Category | Tier | Declared % | Est. % |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Wild caught NZ Fish Meal | Fish Meal | meat | medium | - | 10.0 |
| 2 | ground Potato | Potatoes | carb | medium | - | 9.6 |
| 3 | stabilised with Rosemary | Rosemary | veg | good | - | 9.2 |
| 4 | citric acid | Citric Acid | additive | medium | - | 8.8 |
| 5 | Vitamins C and E | Vitamin | supplement | good | - | 8.5 |
| 6 | Flaxseed | Linseed | veg | good | - | 8.1 |
| 7 | NZ Fish oil | Fish Oil | oil | good | - | 7.7 |
| 8 | Kelp | Kelp | veg | good | - | 7.3 |
| 9 | Salt | Salt | additive | medium | - | 6.9 |
| 10 | Garlic | Garlic | veg | medium | - | 6.5 |
| 11 | added Vitamins | Vitamin | supplement | good | - | 6.2 |
| 12 | Prebiotics | Prebiotics | supplement | good | - | 5.8 |
| 13 | and Chelated minerals | Vitamins and minerals | supplement | medium | - | 5.4 |
Brand
Trust and provenance
- Recall history
- No recalls recorded in our database
- Label data last checked
- 2026-09-19
- Scored with
- Model v3 (methodology)
- Product page
- realdogfood.co.nz
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.
Recipe: how the 1-100 score is calculated
Scored with model v3 on 2026-09-26. 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 | 0.7 | 9.191 | +6.87 |
| Carb share of dry matter | 3.3% | -0.115 | -0.38 |
| Oil share of dry matter | 10.4% | -0.092 | -0.96 |
| Vegetable share of dry matter | 22.1% | -0.005 | -0.11 |
| Additive share of dry matter | 19.4% | 0.163 | +3.15 |
| Supplement share of dry matter | 32.3% | -0.012 | -0.39 |
| Undeclared quantities | 100.0% | -0.106 | -10.56 |
| Complete diet | yes | 2.294 | +2.29 |
| Low meat (under 10% of dry matter) | yes | -3.158 | -3.16 |
| Additive penalty | -19.06 | 0.222 | -4.23 |
| 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 | 0.7 | 9.191 | +6.87 |
| Meat share of dry matter | 0.0% | 0.096 | +0.00 |
| Carb share of dry matter | 3.3% | -0.115 | -0.38 |
| Oil share of dry matter | 10.4% | -0.092 | -0.96 |
| Vegetable share of dry matter | 22.1% | -0.005 | -0.11 |
| Additive share of dry matter | 19.4% | 0.163 | +3.15 |
| Supplement share of dry matter | 32.3% | -0.012 | -0.39 |
| Other share of dry matter | 0.0% | -0.375 | +0.00 |
| Unrecognised share of dry matter | 0.0% | -0.027 | +0.00 |
| Recipe graded poor | 0.0% | -0.065 | +0.00 |
| Poor-quality meat in recipe | 0.0% | -0.179 | +0.00 |
| Number of poor ingredients | 0 | -0.876 | +0.00 |
| Largest single poor ingredient | 0.0% | 0.060 | +0.00 |
| Undeclared quantities | 100.0% | -0.106 | -10.56 |
| Prints ingredient percentages | no | 0.000 | +0.00 |
| Complete diet | yes | 2.294 | +2.29 |
| 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 | -19.06 | 0.222 | -4.23 |
| 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
- Additives declared on label
- +1 transparency bonus
- Subtotal
- 50.8
- Final score
- 51/100
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.
Nutritional: declared analysis vs reference ranges
Analytical constituents not declared
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 (voluntary) - not on file | 0/20 |
| Analytical constituents declared (mandatory) - not on file | 0/15 |
| Additives declared (mandatory) | 5/10 |
| Energy value declared (voluntary) - not on file | 0/5 |
| 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 file | 0/5 |
Capped at 60: mandatory items missing (Analytical constituents declared, 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.
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
- "100% grain & gluten free" — supported by the declared grain-free data.
- "No wheat, no corn, no artificial nasties" — supported by the declared grain-free data.
8 further claims on file that we cannot check against the label.
Moderate: every checkable claim is consistent with the declared label.
| Claim | Type | Check | Substantiation |
|---|---|---|---|
| Gentle on digestion (on page) | Functional | not checkable | Manufacturer assertion |
| Shiny coat (on page) | Functional | not checkable | Manufacturer assertion |
| Made in New Zealand (on page) | provenance | not checkable | Manufacturer assertion |
| 100% Love It, Or Get Your Money Back (on page) | Functional | not checkable | Manufacturer assertion |
| 100% grain & gluten free (on page) | Free-from | consistent | Manufacturer assertion |
| Grain Free is the answer. Made with wild-caught NZ fish and wholesome potato (on page) | Content | not checkable | Manufacturer assertion |
| All our food has human grade ingredients (on page) | Content | not checkable | Manufacturer assertion |
| Independently Tested to Exceed AFFCO Standard (on page) | Content | not checkable | Manufacturer assertion |
| Loaded with Omega 3 and 6 (on page) | Nutrient | not checkable | Manufacturer assertion |
| No wheat, no corn, no artificial nasties (on page) | Free-from | consistent | Manufacturer 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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Alternatives to Grain Free
Foods in our database that are similar on ingredients, protein, format or price. Scores and figures are from the same deterministic model used everywhere on the site.
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