Cesar Sunrise Breakfast Grilled Steak & Eggs Dog Food Trays

The average dog food we reviewed has 39 total ingredients, with 1 controversial ingredient. This product has startling 7 total controversial ingredients and 2 of them are found in the top five ingredients. This is concerning because the first five ingredients make up most of the product.

Top 5 Ingredients

Dog food ingredients are listed in descending order of weight. So when looking at dog food label, take a close look at the first 5 ingredients. They make up about 80% of the total weight.

• Sufficient Water for Processing
  This is just another name for water, which doesn't add nutrients to the food but is routinely used in dog food manufacturing (especially for canned foods). It's a standard dog food ingredient.

• Beef By-Products
  Meat by-products are animal parts other than meat that are left over at the slaughterhouse. This can include the lung, spleen, brain, liver, blood, bone, beaks, kidneys, fatty tissue, and intestines. Because there is a wide variety of animal parts companies can use, and because details don't need to be disclosed, it's tough to compare the quality of different by-products. Generally speaking, by-products can provide important nutrients for dogs but can be of lower quality than meats and meat meals. For these reasons, we do not consider this a high-quality ingredient.

• Liver
  The liver is an organ that's rich in iron, copper, and vitamin A and B. Generally, the liver is a nutritious and healthy ingredient, but this ingredient doesn't identify the species it comes from making it questionable and intransparent. This includes the potential that rancid, dead, dying, disabled or diseased meat sources could have been used. For these reasons, it's controversial.
  
  
• Meat By-Products
  Meat by-products are animal parts other than meat that are left over at the slaughterhouse. This can include the lung, spleen, brain, liver, blood, bone, beaks, kidneys, fatty tissue, and intestines. Because there is a wide variety of animal parts companies can use, and because details don't need to be disclosed, it's tough to compare the quality of different by-products. Generally speaking, by-products can provide important nutrients for dogs but can be of lower quality than meats and meat meals. Additionally, this ingredient doesn't identify the species it comes from making it questionable and intransparent. This includes the potential that rancid, dead, dying, disabled or diseased meat sources could have been used. For these reasons, we do not consider this a high-quality ingredient.
  
  
• Beef
  Beef is the culinary name for cuts of meat from cattle, particularly skeletal muscle. In dog food, beef can also include muscle tissues from the tongue, heart, diaphragm or esophagus. Beef is rich in protein and nutrients like niacin, vitamin B12, creatine, iron and zinc. Beef is generally a healthy dog food ingredient. Whole meat contains about 75% water which is cooked off during the making of dog food. This leaves only a fraction of the protein content in the final product. We recommend looking for dog foods that also include meat meals (pre-cooked meat powder that contains four times the amount of protein).

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‍Controversial Ingredients

1. Liver
2. The liver is an organ that's rich in iron, copper, and vitamin A and B. Generally, the liver is a nutritious and healthy ingredient, but this ingredient doesn't identify the species it comes from making it questionable and intransparent. This includes the potential that rancid, dead, dying, disabled or diseased meat sources could have been used. For these reasons, it's controversial.

1. Meat By-Products
2. Meat by-products are animal parts other than meat that are left over at the slaughterhouse. This can include the lung, spleen, brain, liver, blood, bone, beaks, kidneys, fatty tissue, and intestines. Because there is a wide variety of animal parts companies can use, and because details don't need to be disclosed, it's tough to compare the quality of different by-products. Generally speaking, by-products can provide important nutrients for dogs but can be of lower quality than meats and meat meals. For these reasons, we do not consider this a high-quality ingredient.

1. Poultry By-Products
2. Meat by-products are animal parts other than meat that are left over at the slaughterhouse. This can include the lung, spleen, brain, liver, blood, bone, beaks, kidneys, fatty tissue, and intestines. Because there is a wide variety of animal parts companies can use, and because details don't need to be disclosed, it's tough to compare the quality of different by-products. Generally speaking, by-products can provide important nutrients for dogs but can be of lower quality than meats and meat meals. Additionally, this ingredient doesn't identify the species it comes from making it questionable and intransparent. This includes the potential that rancid, dead, dying, disabled or diseased meat sources could have been used. For these reasons, we do not consider this a high-quality ingredient. Glucosamine is a combination of glutamine (an amino acid) and glucose (a sugar) that's present in chicken. Chondroitin sulfate is a chemical that's naturally found in the cartilage around the joints of animals.

1. Added Color
2. Artificial Color generically refers to synthetic dyes used to change the color of food, cosmetics and medications. In humans added colors can cause reactions that include headaches, asthma attacks, itching or hives, insomnia, and hyperactivity. What's most concerning is that this ingredient is completely unnecessary, dogs simply don't care about the color of their food.

1. Carrageenan
2. Carrageenan is derived from red algae or seaweed and is used as a gelling or thickening ingredient to bind food together. Evidence has been found that it is potentially inflammatory and toxic to the digestive tract, and may be responsible for colitis, IBS, rheumatoid arthritis, and colon cancer.

1. Liquid Grilled Steak Flavor
2. Artificial flavors are added to increase the chance your dog will want to eat the food. The generic term artificial flavor is used to represent a large number of possible additives, some which could be harmful. These flavors may include but not list controversial ingredients such as propylene glycol, BHA and more.

1. Sodium Nitrite (For Color Retention)
2. A food preservative that prevents the growth of microorganisms while giving taste and color to processed meats. The International Agency for Research on Cancer has classified Sodium Nitrite as "probably carcinogenic to humans."

‍Country of Origin

Cesar is made in the United States.

Meat & Fat Quality

The meat quality of this product is mixed, and not great. Three of the meat ingredients, Beef, Chicken, Beef By-Products identify the specific animal they come from which is important. However, the other 3 meat ingredients Meat By-Products, Poultry By-Products and Liver do not make it clear exactly where these ingredients are coming from. Since there are not any added fats, the majority of the fat content is coming from the meat, so the same concerns exist.  

Artificial Preservatives

This product contains 1 controversial preservative called Sodium Nitrite. Artificial preservatives are not inherently bad, they prevent food from spoiling which is important. However, we consider 11 artificial preservatives controversial because of their potential link to cancer and other serious health conditions. Unfortunately, the Sodium Nitrite included in this product is one we consider controversial.

Artificial Colors

Beyond that controversial preservative, Cesar also includes added color. These food colorings offer no nutritional value and are potentially unhealthy. Often they are designed to appeal to you and not your dog.  

Artificial Flavors

There are no artificial flavorings in this product.