Why does dry food seem to have more protein than Freshpet® when I look at the Guaranteed Analysis on the label?

The Guaranteed Analysis is used to place a value on four nutrients: protein, fat, fiber, and moisture. However, it doesn’t consider the water content of the product and can be misleading. Even the Food and Drug Administration admits to this problem on its website stating, “To make meaningful comparisons of nutrient levels between a canned (or fresh) and dry product, they should be expressed on the same moisture basis.”

To determine the amount of protein on a dry matter basis:

• Subtract the moisture percentage from 100% to determine the dry matter percentage
• Divide the protein percentage by the percent of dry matter percentage
• Multiply by 100.

For a simple example, a product with 10% protein and 75% moisture is within the range of Freshpet foods:

• 100% – 75% moisture = 25% dry matter
• 10% Protein /25% dry Matter = .4
• .4 x 100 = 40% dry matter protein content

This same formula can be used to determine the dry matter fat and fiber contents.