Pedigree Chopped Ground Dinner With Beef Canned Dog Food

The average dog food we reviewed had 39 total ingredients, with 1 controversial ingredient. This product has 6 total controversial ingredients and 2 of them are among the first five ingredients. Why does this matter? It’s concerning because the first 5 ingredients make up most of the product’s weight, so we prefer none of them used at all - and certainly none in the top 5.

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.

• Chicken 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.

• Chicken
  Chicken is a nutritious meat that provides protein, fat and other nutrients to dogs. Raw 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's weight. We recommend looking for dog foods that also include meat meals in the first five ingredients (pre-cooked meat powder that contains four times the amount of protein). However, chicken is generally a healthy dog food ingredient.
  
  
• 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.
  
  
• Animal Liver
  The liver is an organ that's rich in iron, copper, and vitamins A and B. Generally, the liver is a nutritious and healthy ingredient, 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.

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‍Controversial Ingredients

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. Animal 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. Brewers Rice
2. Brewers Rice is basically white rice that has been broken into smaller pieces. It's a waste product of the milling process and considered a low quality ingredient because its missing many of the nutrients contained in whole ground rice and brown rice.

1. Added Color
2. Added 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 these ingredients are 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. Red #3
2. Erythrosine (also called Red 3 or Red #3) is a synthetic dye used to change the color of food. it's been linked to cancer in animals, as well as thyroid tumors. The US has banned it in cosmetics and external drugs but allows for ingestion. What's most concerning is that this ingredient is completely unnecessary, dogs simply don't care about the color of their food.

‍Country of Origin

Pedigree Chopped Ground Dinner is made in the United States, which ensures a higher level of quality and safety standards. This is very good.

Meat & Fat Quality

The meat quality of this dog food varies a bit. Pedigree Chopped Ground Dinner includes ingredients like Chicken By-Products, Chicken and Beef - all of which  are good because they come from clearly identified animal species. However, there are also Meat By-Products and Animal Liver, which do not tell you what animal they are made from at all. That’s intransparent and therefore lower quality. Pedigree Chopped Ground Dinner doesn’t include added oils, so the fat in the food comes from other ingredients like the meats. Because the proteins are somewhat intransparent, the fat is as well.

Artificial Preservatives

Pedigree Chopped Ground Dinner includes no controversial preservatives, very good. By the way: Not all artificial preservatives are bad. That’s because they serve an important purpose, which is to prevent food from spoiling. However, we consider 11 artificial preservatives controversial because of their potential link to cancer and other serious health conditions..

Artificial Colors

Unfortunately, we found two artificial colors in this food - Added Color (a synthetic dye) and Red #3. Please see above for a summary of both of them.  Artificial colors are unnecessary in dog food because dogs eat food of any color. They’re added to appeal to humans that buy the food, but are potentially unhealthy to your dog.

Artificial Flavors

Pedigree Chopped Ground Dinner does not include artificial flavors, that’s very good. It does well on flavors and preservatives, but unfortunately falls short on colors.