FEDIAF, Complete and Balanced. What it all means.
What is FEDIAF?
FEDIAF stands for ‘European Pet Food Industry Federation’ and describes itself as an industry associate, this description implies they cannot enforce laws but can draw up guidelines and recommendations and standards which are intended to help manufacturers produce safe food for animals.
FEDIAF is made up of 18 members from different parts of Europe, some of the big names you may recognise – Hills, Mars and Purina. These companies have a say in what is allowed in pet food, and how much is acceptable.
What do they do?
The aim of FEDIAF is to provide guidelines for the quantities of nutrients a dog needs per day to ensure the animal remains healthy. They provide specific figures for the following:
1. Macronutrients (Proteins, fats, carbohydrates)
2. Vitamins (essential nutrients for dogs are – Vitamin A, D, E, K, B)
3. Minerals (such as calcium, phosphorus, magnesium, sodium and potassium)
4. Trace Minerals (zinc, cooper, manganese, iodine, selenium and iron)
5. The energy requirements depending on life stage (Puppy, adult, senior, pregnant)
What does complete and balanced mean?
Balanced and complete is a term used on dog food labels, it means the food contains the correct nutrients in the correct amounts according to FEDIAF guidelines, this needs to meet or exceed the minimum.
How do they come up with these guidelines?
They are based on scientific literature and studies, but these studies are based on very small numbers of dogs, and the dogs merely needed to survive. So, although the guidelines are a helpful resource, if only the minimum is met using poor quality high heat processed food, this is not an optimal diet. However, fresh food recipes may not require to meet all guidelines as fresh food is more bioavailable.
They are also partly based on other committees, such as American AAFCO and NRC, but FEDIAF adapts their guidelines to fit what they believe is correct and are more specific than these other committees and update and reassess the guidelines more regulatory based on new scientific data, this is why I choose to use FEDIAF as a resource.
So is this a good thing?
In short, yes. It stops dog food manufacturers producing food with no idea of the nutritional content, and they must hit minimum requirements and meet recommended guidelines for life stages.
HOWEVER, what it doesn’t do and what you won’t know is whether they have used high quality ingredients, we don’t know where the meat has come from, the label may not disclose all the ingredients. Sometimes the label won’t show how much or each macronutrient the food is providing, and whether this is suitable for any medical conditions. It might be sufficient, but it might not be enough, as dogs are all individuals.
Dogs are individuals and have different ages, health status, breed, activity level, metabolism, lifestyle, nervous system and so although using FEDIAF guidelines Is useless, tweaking feeding amounts, ingredients and proteins to suit your dog is going to be better for their wellbeing and general health.
How we can improve and optimise our dog’s diet while using FEDIAF compliant food.
Always take a close look at the food label, have a look for where the protein comes from, is it meat meal or animal derivatives, or is high quality protein. Are there any hidden proteins in there such as legumes. How much and what type of carbohydrates are used? Check for additives, premade dog food will use synthetic premixes, but do they include nasty additives. How is your dog doing on the food? Are they a healthy weight, do they have healthy stools, a shiny coat, do they have a good energy level? All these things are related to your dog’s diet, so if things don’t seem quite right, look at the food, the label and consider home cooking or switching.
Why home cooking using FEDIAF guideline is better than commercial?
You choose the proteins, you choose the quality, you choose the ingredients, you prepare the food and gently cook it rather than high heat processing, you can select ingredients your dog tolerates and enjoys, you know the moisture level is high, we know whole food is more Bioavailable and can be utilised better. It’s a no brainer if you have the time.
Final Thoughts
FEDIAF is a helpful organisation providing nutritional guidelines for dog food manufacturers, they can help us provide sufficient nutrients and levels for different live stages. But they don’t always have maximum, and all commercial food companies use synthetic vitamins and minerals, using these synthetic mixes pose higher risk of toxicity then whole foods, they don’t regulate the quality of the ingredient, and it is not specific to dogs individually, so this Is your job. Read the label carefully, monitor your dog’s health and weight and switch if you feel this is necessary, there are better commercial foods out there, its just about understanding and doing your research. If you can switch to home cooking then even better, check out my pre-made recipes here.