If you've been referred to this page directly from another site, please check out the links and information on Feline Diabetes on Binky's main page.
The U.S.A. canned food table has been divided into pages for newer and older (earlier than 2005) information.
If your favorite cat food is not listed on the new table, this may be because:
1.) No one has recently asked the company for the as-fed values, which are the only reasonably accurate source of information (the so-called "guaranteed" values on the labels can be very inaccurate);
2.) They have been asked for information but have provided something other than the as-fed values;
3.) They have been asked for information but have claimed that information is not available (question: how did they calculate the numbers on the label?); or
4.) They have been asked for information and refused to provide it. (An amazing number of companies have adopted the philosophy that this information is classified, and you, the consumer, have no "need to know".)You will have to make your own decision about whether you want to give your business to a company that does not make it easy for you to make informed decisions about whether their product is appropriate for your cat.
Because current U.S. labeling laws permit it. If you think that pet food companies should not be permitted to tell you, the customer, that what's in pet food is none of your business, please take a moment to contact the FDA and let them know what you think! Information on how to do this is at Lynette's Pet Food Crusade.
In praise of good citizenship, I present: Binky's Honor Roll!
- Companies would be required to have their food analyzed by an independent laboratory at least once a year, or whenever there is a change in formula.
- They should be required to make available to consumers, at a minimum, the actual values of protein, fat, carbohydrate, water, calcium, phosphorus, and sodium, as well as a complete ingredient list and information on whether genetically modified or cloned ingredients are used.
- This information should be promptly printed on the label and posted on the web site.
- There should no longer be a six-month grace period during which they can use an old label on a changed food.
- The so-called "Guaranteed" minimum and maximum values should be abolished, as they can be grossly inaccurate.
- Additionally, the FDA should provide these values on a single web page so that consumers can make informed choices.
- Fines should be levied against companies that do not comply with these requirements. In the case of willfull and egregious misconduct (such as resulted in the poisoning deaths of many cats and dogs in 2006 and 2007), or deception, criminal law should apply.
IMPORTANT: My inclusion of companies on the honor roll is simply meant to honor their commitment to customer service, and to encourage other companies to practice their business openly. It is not an endorsement of the food itself.
|
BINKY'S HONOR ROLL
Companies which provide "as fed" or "dry matter" information on their web pages Feline's Pride
Hill's Pet Natura/Innova/EVO Honorable Mentions Royal Canin (provides values for some but not all foods) Wellness (carbohydrate values need to be obtained from company or estimated from energy information) Thank
you for understanding that a
well-informed customer is your best customer!
|
Why aren't you on this list, too? Are you going to let these other companies show you up and grab your best customers? You know your food is at least as good! You know that word of mouth is the best advertising, and that the Internet has vastly increased communication between customers! Take the BINKY CHALLENGE, and add as-fed information to your web page, too! If your product is good, you will love the results!My favorite links for information on feline nutrition:
MaxsHouse.comWho the heck is Janet?
CatInfo.org
CatNutrition.org
Pat et al's 10 reasons not to change that diet just yet!
Noreen's canned and dry food lists with phosphorus info
I am a private person who is deeply interested in feline nutrition and who works with numbers for a living. I started to compile the food tables when my cat Binky was diagnosed with diabetes in January 2000 and I learned about the role that carbohydrate restriction plays in treating feline diabetes. Thanks to dietary advice from Dr. Richard Nelson, the Feline Diabetes Message Board created by Dr. Rebecca Price, the testimonial by Gia & Quirk, and a large dose of genetic good luck, Binky became a diet-controlled diabetic within weeks of starting insulin therapy.
These pages are a completely non-commercial labor of love. I make no revenue or profit from providing this information. This work has no connection to any commercial product, including foods or supplements. I do not endorse any brand of food or supplement. I encourage potential consumers of any commercial product to search for randomized controlled trials that demonstrate that a low-carbohydrate diet with the product gives statistically superior results compared to a low-carbohydrate diet alone in diabetic cats.
. . . And you'd like me to add them to the food tables, please e-mail me at binky dot cat at sbcglobal dot net. At the very least, I need "as fed" values for protein, fat, and carbohydrate. It would also be helpful to have "as fed" values for phosphorus, fiber, water, ash, and calcium, along with calorie information. I cannot use any number which is labeled "maximum" or "minimum", because it is by definition not an accurate value.