PET Food Processing - December 2022 - 39

grains such as quinoa, millet and sorghum for their
perceived superior nutrition. Brookshire cautioned the
importance of understanding how these ingredients fit
into the overall nutrition of a diet because there is not
much scientific data or historical use of some of these
ingredients in pet food. Other elements contributing to
growth include air-dried and freeze-dried products with
new extrusion technology, allowing lower and low-carbohydrate
diets that maintain the essential amino acids
and fatty acids.
But maintaining the presence of a variety of nutritional
inputs may be key. Mitch Felderhoff, president of
sales and marketing, Muenster Milling, Muenster, Texas,
recommended avoiding going heavy with a single source
of carbohydrates. He also cautioned against using ingredients
with gluten because of the crossover handling of
products by those who are feeding the pet.
" I think there are consumer misconceptions when it
comes to consumers staying away from corn, soy, wheat
and the traditional cereal grains, " Felderhoff continued.
" Some brands avoid
ingredients such as corn
while others embrace it. "
Melissa Brookshire, DVM, North River Enterprises
" The public tends to overreact to some of these based
on anecdotal evidence or unfounded claims. When you
dig into the actual nutrition of the ingredients and diets
in question, some of the issues are actually due to
overconcentration of a singular ingredient as opposed
to healthy levels. "
Allergies can occur from the body's response to the
protein component of an ingredient. This would make it
possible for the pet to be allergic to other carbohydrate
sources in the product, but it would be an extremely rare
situation, according to Brookshire.
The inclusion of legumes and pulses contain anti-nutritional
factors and oligosaccharides that can negatively
affect digestibility and fecal quality. This does not mean
that these ingredients cannot be safely used in formulations
when used at a safe inclusion rate, according to Su.
Instances depend on the fiber level and oligosaccharides
of that specific ingredient to avoid causing a histamine response
in the animal if it is sensitive to that carbohydrate.
" The recent FDA reports of dilated cardiomyopathy
(DCM) correlated grain-free diets and legumes to the development
of disease, " Su said. " However, it is impossible to
draw any definitive conclusions at this time to link specific
ingredients to DCM. Since there are potential unknown ingredient
interactions and variation in ingredient nutritional
variability, as well as potential genetic predispositions, it is
best practice to analyze the finished product instead of relying
on formulation data and to perform feeding trials and
digestibility studies to ensure safety of the product. "
Balancing act
While excessive carbs could become problematic over
the long term, total avoidance poses another issue - the
For loaf-style
products, Cargill offers
label-friendly starches
that offer texture on
par with the modified
starches they are
meant to replace.
Cargill
Rice is a highly
digestible
carbohydrate that
is often used as an
ingredient in pet
food and treats.
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PET Food Processing - December 2022

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