Spring Break
Protecting your pet: is organic actually better?
Shannon Sanders
Issue date: 10/29/07 Section: Life & Style
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Chicken, carrots, peas, oats, fish, barley and brown rice.
Sounds like a fairly average shopping list for the health-conscious consumer - but for your pet? This is an example of what some proud parents are feeding their dogs and cats, and what's more, it's all organic.
A healthy combination of ingredients is part of the growing popularity of organic pet food, a trend that has been gaining popularity since the recent pet food poisoning scare in March. Owners are looking to organic for healthier and safer options as alternatives to regular formula pet foods, but the verdict is still out on the new food. Cost efficiency and questions on whether or not organic formulas are actually better for pets are two areas that producers and officials are discussing.
Last year, pet owners in the United States spent about $15.4 billion on pet food, according to the American Pet Products Manufacturers Association. Organic pet food accounts for about $10 million of that, but is steadily growing each year, said Kurt Gallagher, a representative for the Pet Food Institute. Buying organic is a trend that started in the human food sector many years ago and gradually moved into pet food products.
"Pet foods are designed to be the sole source of nutrition for pets," Gallagher said. "That means their nutrient makeup needs to be much more precise than human foods, and many such ingredients are not available naturally in quantities that permit large scale production."
This problem has aided in the development of organic foods for pets. Balanced nutrition and fewer additives has been the goal of many pet food producers in developing new foods and formulas.
Organic food, or food that has been grown without pesticides and manufactured without additives, is a growing market in the United States. Anything can be grown organically, but must meet U.S. Department of Agriculture standards to be certified. Manufacturers go through a rigorous process to be certified organic. Records for the fields where organic products are grown must be provided, and the land has to be proven pesticide- and chemical-free for at lease three years before certification can be granted. Also, the majority of the ingredients in a product must be certified organic for the product to have USDA organic labeling.
Sounds like a fairly average shopping list for the health-conscious consumer - but for your pet? This is an example of what some proud parents are feeding their dogs and cats, and what's more, it's all organic.
A healthy combination of ingredients is part of the growing popularity of organic pet food, a trend that has been gaining popularity since the recent pet food poisoning scare in March. Owners are looking to organic for healthier and safer options as alternatives to regular formula pet foods, but the verdict is still out on the new food. Cost efficiency and questions on whether or not organic formulas are actually better for pets are two areas that producers and officials are discussing.
Last year, pet owners in the United States spent about $15.4 billion on pet food, according to the American Pet Products Manufacturers Association. Organic pet food accounts for about $10 million of that, but is steadily growing each year, said Kurt Gallagher, a representative for the Pet Food Institute. Buying organic is a trend that started in the human food sector many years ago and gradually moved into pet food products.
"Pet foods are designed to be the sole source of nutrition for pets," Gallagher said. "That means their nutrient makeup needs to be much more precise than human foods, and many such ingredients are not available naturally in quantities that permit large scale production."
This problem has aided in the development of organic foods for pets. Balanced nutrition and fewer additives has been the goal of many pet food producers in developing new foods and formulas.
Organic food, or food that has been grown without pesticides and manufactured without additives, is a growing market in the United States. Anything can be grown organically, but must meet U.S. Department of Agriculture standards to be certified. Manufacturers go through a rigorous process to be certified organic. Records for the fields where organic products are grown must be provided, and the land has to be proven pesticide- and chemical-free for at lease three years before certification can be granted. Also, the majority of the ingredients in a product must be certified organic for the product to have USDA organic labeling.
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