PET Food Processing - December 2019 - 40

FORMULATION

stable and can be degraded during processing," Clark
says. "Additionally, shelf life is only as good as the nutrient survival property."
As with minerals, some forms of vitamins are
more bioavailable to companion animals than others.
"Synthetic vitamins have a high availability to the animal, which helps ensure the animal can meet its needs,
assuming proper supplementation," Faber says.
Vitamins must be supplemented in precise amounts
as to not cause toxicity, which is perhaps the most consequential aspect of these micronutrients. "Vitamin analysis is highly variable and sensitive to numerous factors.
Vitamin data can be very misleading, which can affect
vitamin fortification amounts," Faber says.
Vitamin D is a prime example of this. "A complete
diet can have a substantial amount of natural, inherent
vitamin D, but the stability, amount and potential for absorption is variable. This makes determining the amount
of supplemental vitamin D in the diet very challenging,"
Faber says. "This is why quality assurance is so important to ensure the diets have the correct amount of vitamins in them so they meet the nutritional requirements
for the animal," he advises.

For young and old

Top: Appropriate trace
mineral supplementation will result in skin
and coat health, good
paw pad integrity, a
strong immune system
and healthy reproduction, among other
physiological benefits.
© 2019 Carlos Miguel Forero

Bottom: Understanding
the form and source
of each trace mineral
and how they interact
is crucial to ensure they
are properly absorbed
by the pet.
Zinpro Performance Minerals

vitamins, including B-12, B2 or riboflavin, niacin, pantothenic acid, B1 or thiamine, B6 or pyridoxine, and biotin,
are essential for metabolism, nervous system function, cell
integrity and maintaining a healthy skin and coat.
"Fat- and water-soluble vitamins differ in how they
are absorbed in the digestive tract," Faber explains. "Fatsoluble vitamins are absorbed with dietary lipids, while
water-soluble vitamins are absorbed via passive diffusion
and sometimes active transport." He adds that fat-soluble vitamins have antioxidant and immunomodulatory
effects in companion animals, whereas water-soluble
vitamins are more associated with nutrient metabolism.
There are some processing challenges related to vitamins that are dependent on moisture, temperature and
time, Faber says. For example, thiamin can be destroyed
in a retort cooking process by as much as 90%, according
to Faber.
In this regard, it is important for pet food formulators
to consider the processing methods and target the shelflife of the product. "Most vitamins are not highly heat

PET FOOD PROCESSING | December 2019 | www.petfoodprocessing.net

While proper formulation of vitamins and minerals is
essential at all stages of a pet's life, dogs and cats require
different forms and sources in early development and
old age. "During each life-stage, the body is focusing on
different metabolic functions, which requires varying
amounts of nutrients," Faber says.
Getting the forms, sources and concentrations of vitamins and minerals right plays a critical role in establishing a foundation of health and wellness in developing animals. "If we look at, let's say puppies or kittens,
we're building new muscle, we're building new bone, and
more importantly we're building bone and joint matrices that we hope have good integrity to maintain the
health and well-being of that animal for many years,"
Tomlinson says.
Zinc is essential for building muscle tissues and
driving the activity of calcium, and manganese is crucial for establishing joint cartilage and maintaining
other articular joint fluids. "How we formulate those
diets with the chelates in our young, rapidly developing
animals really kind of sets the stage for the health and
well-being of that animal in those very early points in
life," Tomlinson says.
Diets for geriatric, or senior, animals require careful formulation when it comes to trace minerals. If
they have an insufficient supply, their bodies will begin to break down tissues and muscle to release stored
nutrients and use them for more immediate functions.

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PET Food Processing - December 2019

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