Most pet food makers buy ingredients at food grade, or at a high feed grade with food-style microbial limits. Cheaper feed-grade material made for livestock is rarely good enough, because pets live in homes and owners handle the food.
If a brand sells its product as human grade, the rules are stricter still in some markets. In that case the whole supply chain, not just the ingredient, may need to meet human food standards.
Decide which grade your label and customers need before you ask for quotes. It changes which plants you can use and what tests you pay for.
Feed grade, food grade and human grade
- Feed grade: made for animal feed under feed rules. Fine for livestock, but limits on microbes, foreign matter and appearance may be loose.
- Food grade: made in a plant licensed for human food, such as under FSSAI in India, to food microbial and residue limits.
- Human grade: a marketing claim. In the US, it is governed by AAFCO guidance and generally requires every ingredient and the finished product to be handled as human food. Check current guidance in your market.
What pet food buyers usually ask for
- Microbiology: salmonella absent in a stated sample size, with limits for Enterobacteriaceae, yeast and mould.
- Mycotoxins: aflatoxin and others, at limits tighter than the legal minimum.
- Pesticide residues and heavy metals against their market's limits.
- Foreign matter: low limits, since visible defects in treats and toppers draw complaints.
- Consistent colour, particle size and flavour, so finished products look the same batch to batch.
- Traceability: lot numbers that link back to the raw material.
- Plant certification: many buyers prefer a GFSI-recognised scheme such as BRCGS or FSSC 22000.
Indian ingredients and where they fit
From India, pet food makers buy dehydrated vegetables, psyllium, turmeric, moringa, rice products and some oilmeals. Spice and dehydration plants usually already work to food standards, which helps. Oilmeal plants usually make feed grade for livestock and may need extra controls for pet food.
Onion and garlic are toxic to dogs and cats, so keep them out, as covered in whether dehydrated vegetables and herbs can be used in pet food.
Writing the spec
Write one specification per ingredient, with each parameter, limit, method and test frequency. Require no ETO treatment and state whether steam sterilisation is needed. Ask for a certificate of analysis per lot from an NABL-accredited lab, and keep a counter-sample. The method is in how to write a good specification for an agri product, and certifications are compared in what BRCGS certification is and why UK retailers ask for it.
Where we come in
We shortlist food-licensed plants that can meet pet food limits, audit their hygiene and traceability, and test samples at NABL-accredited labs. We then check each lot before loading. Ask for a free sourcing review.