Nature’s Recipe

Nature’s Recipe Information

Nature’s Recipe was founded 35 years ago by Jeff Bennet, who is better known for founding another pet food brand – Earth Elements.

The brand’s recipes are produced by Big Heart Pet Brands, which also produces pet food for other brands such as Natural Balance, Kibbles ‘n Bits, and Gravy Train.

The manufacturing of Nature’s Recipe’s dry dog food recipes is done within the United States, but their wet/canned products are produced in Thailand.

While this may put off some dog owners, Nature’s Recipe isn’t the only brand to outsource canned dog food production to South East Asia with brands like Weruva also doing so.

Nature’s Recipe dog food is available from a large number of physical pet food stores across the United States as well as online from many of the massive pet food websites like Chewy and Petflow.

Nature’s Recipe Product Range

Nature’s Recipe has a broad range of dog food products. This product range includes both dry dog food and wet/canned dog food with both ranges having a similar number of recipes.

In addition, the range from Nature’s Recipe includes some specialized recipes such as those for puppies, large breed dogs, and small breed dogs.

Lastly, Nature’s Recipe produces a mix of grain-free and grain-inclusive dog food recipes

Nature’s Recipe Nutrition

Sadly, the nutrition offered by most Nature’s Recipe dog food formulas is not impressive. We would describe it as average to below-average when compared to other dog food brands.

This nutritional profile correlates to below-average proportions of protein and fat and significant proportions of carbohydrates.

While this nutritional profile is unlikely to harm dogs directly, most dogs will not excel or thrive as much compared to if they were fed a diet higher in animal-based protein and fat.

You can see an example of the nutrition offered by a Nature’s Recipe dry dog food recipe below.

If you are interested in learning more about canine nutrition, we highly recommend you read our Dog Food Guide.

Nature’s Recipe Ingredients

High-Quality Meat & Fish Ingredients

• Chicken
• Beef
• Lamb
• Venison
• Salmon

Nature’s Recipe uses a relatively small range of meat and fish ingredients in its recipes. This range includes some of the industry favorites like Chicken, Beef, and Salmon.

These ingredients are commonly used by dog food brands because they are affordable, easy to source, and are highly nutritious. They act as a dense source of high-quality protein and fat, which is ideal for a dog’s diet.

However, Nature’s Recipe also utilizes some less common meat ingredients like Venison. Ingredients like Venison are often used in dog food for dogs with allergies or sensitivities.

If you are interested in learning more about Venison’s use in dog food and Hypoallergenic dog food, be sure to check out the articles below.

Best Dog Foods With Venison

Best Hypoallergenic Dog Foods Guide

Other Notable Ingredients

Nature’s Recipe uses a mixture of grain ingredients in its grain-inclusive recipes. Examples of these include Rice, Barley, and Oatmeal. Grain ingredients are controversial additions to dog food recipes, with many consumers being against their use.

However, regardless of your opinion, they can provide valuable nutrition in the form of carbohydrates, plant-based protein, fiber, and select micronutrients.

One point for concern is Nature’s Recipe’s use of “Rice” in some of its recipes. This is a vague ingredient, and we’d prefer if they stated whether it is White Rice or Brown Rice.

If you’d like to learn more about Barley, check out our article Barley In Dog Food.

Brewers Rice is also a grain ingredient found in some Nature’s Recipe formulas. Sadly, many believe that this isn’t a positive addition as Brewers Rice to dog food and they consider it to be a poor-quality ingredient.

Brewers Rice is the remnants of Rice processing and has been described by some as “Floor Sweepings”.

You can read more about Brewers Rice in Brewers Rice In Dog Food.

Sweet Potatoes are a starch ingredient, and they are commonly used in dog food recipes including premium brands.

They are an incredibly dense source of carbohydrates, which means that their portion size must be controlled to avoid it becoming excessive.

Sweet Potatoes can also provide additional nutrition compared to White Potatoes in the form of fiber, vitamins, and minerals.

Nature’s Recipe makes use of multiple legume ingredients in its recipes such as Chickpeas and Peas.

These legume ingredients are very popular additions to dog food recipes thanks to their low price point, high availability, and favorable nutrition that is high in plant-based protein.

However, there are growing concerns between the extensive use of legumes in dog food recipes and an increased rate of Canine Heart Disease. If you would like to learn more about this link, you can read about here.

Pumpkin is an ingredient that isn’t utilized by most pet food brands, but it is one that can offer several benefits. It is an excellent source of dietary fiber which can aid a dog’s digestion.

It can also provide carbohydrates and several vitamins and minerals, such as Beta Carotene, which could boost a dog’s health and wellbeing.

You can read more about Pumpkin and some of our favorite pumpkin-including recipes in Best Dog Food With Pumpkin.

Tomato Pomace is used in dog food as a reliable and low-cost source of soluble fiber. Soluble fiber can be crucial to some dogs to ensure they have regular digestion and stools. Outside of this high fiber content, Tomato Pomace provides very little nutrition.

You can learn more about the ingredient in Tomato Pomace as a Pet Food Ingredient?.

Flaxseed is well known to be one of the best plant-based sources of the Omega 3 Fatty Acids.

These fatty acids are believed to provide several health benefits to dogs, including an improvement in the health of a dog’s skin and coat. However, Flaxseed can provide some other nutrients and benefits that many aren’t aware of.

You can read more about Flaxseed and its benefits in Flaxseed In Dog Food.

Nature’s Recipe Animal Testing

At this time, we have no information on what type of animal testing that Nature’s Recipe participates in.

We strongly believe that invasive and laboratory-style testing of animals is a cruel and outdated practice and one which we hope will be eliminated.

Nature’s Recipe Recalls

Based on our research (FDA, AVMA, DogFoodAdvisor), we believe that Nature’s Recipe has been recalled once which means it is not a recall-free brand.

This recall occurred in October 2012 when the brand issued a voluntary recall for one of their dog treat products. This recall was due to potential salmonella contamination.

Salmonella Contamination is one of the most common causes of pet food recalls in the United States. This is mainly due to the fact that Salmonella can cause harm or illness to both humans and pets.

While the brand has been recall-free since this recall, the history of Salmonella is concerning and we hope they take steps to improve their safety and quality measures during production.

We encourage all pet owners to be vigilant of any future recalls of Nature’s Recipe or any other dog food brand.

Nature’s Recipe Featured Articles

At this time, Nature’s Recipe has not been featured in any of our articles.

Best of Nature’s Recipe

Prime Blends Salmon, Barley & Chicken Recipe Review

ㅤ

The above recipe from Nature’s Recipe is a part of their Prime Blends range, which provides more favorable nutrition than its standard product range.

This recipe includes 30% protein, which is extremely high and comparable with more premium brands. The proportion of fat, however, isn’t notably high.

The high protein proportion is thanks to a generous portion of Salmon and Chicken Meal, which are both high-quality ingredients. Chicken Meal, in particular, is an extremely dense source of nutrition.

The recipe then uses a mix of Barley, Oatmeal, and Brown Rice to provide carbohydrates and fiber. These whole-grain ingredients are preferred by many to other grains like Wheat and Corn.

Grain Free Chicken & Turkey Stew Review

ㅤ

Nature’s Recipe’s stew recipes are well worth consideration and are surprisingly affordable compared to many other wet dog food brands.

The above Chicken & Turkey Stew is one of the most nutritious from the range and includes 9% protein and 2.5 fat. This nutritional profile is above-average and would be suitable for dogs of all activity levels.

This protein and fat is sourced from a large portion of Chicken and a smaller portion of Turkey. Both of these whole meat ingredients are high-quality sources of animal-based protein and fat.

Outside of this, the recipe contains a small portion of Sweet Potatoes, Green Beans, and Tapioca. This mix of starch and legume ingredients provides carbohydrates, plant-based protein, and fiber.

Nature’s Recipe Full Product Range

Dog Food

Dry Dog Food

Easy To Digest Chicken Meal, Rice, & Barley Recipe

Grain Free Easy To Digest Chicken, Sweet Potato, & Pumpkin Recipe

Grain Free Easy To Digestion Lamb, Sweet Potato, & Pumpkin Recipe

Large Breed Grain Free Easy To Digest Chicken, Sweet Potato, & Pumpkin Recipe

Grain Free Puppy Chicken, Sweet Potato & Pumpkin Recipe

Grain Free Easy to Digest Salmon, Sweet Potato, & Pumpkin Recipe

Small Breed Grain Free Easy To Digest Chicken, Sweet Potato & Pumpkin Recipe

Healthy Skin Vegetarian Recipe

Adult Chicken Meal & Rice Recipe

Prime Blends Grain Free Beef, Lamb And Potato Recipe

Adult Lamb Meal & Rice Recipe

Puppy Lamb Meal & Rice Recipe

Prime Blends Grain Free Chicken, Turkey, and Butternut Squash Recipe

Prime Blends Salmon, Barley & Chicken Recipe

Senior Lamb Meal & Rice Recipe

Prime Blends Beef, Barley & Venison Recipe

Small Bites Chicken Meal & Rice Recipe

Wet Dog Food

Prime Blends Grain Free Chicken And Lamb Recipe In Wholesome Broth

Prime Blends Chicken And Turkey Recipe In Wholesome Broth

Prime Blends Chicken And Tuna Recipe In Wholesome Broth

Prime Blends Grain Free Chicken And Beef Recipe In Wholesome Broth

Grain Free Chicken & Turkey Stew

Grain Free Easy To Digest Chicken & Venison Recipe In Broth

Stew Healthy Skin Vegetarian Recipe Cuts In Gravy

Stew Easy To Digest Chicken, Rice, & Barley Recipe Cuts In Gravy

Easy To Digest Chicken, Rice & Barley Recipe Homestyle Ground

Easy To Digest Lamb, Rice, & Barley Recipe Homestyle Ground

Stew Easy To Digest Lamb, Rice & Barley Recipe Cuts In Gravy

Chicken & Duck Recipe In Broth

Grain Free Chicken & Venison Stew

Grain Free Easy To Digest Chicken Recipe In Broth

Chicken Recipe In Broth

Chicken & Wild Salmon Recipe In Broth

Chicken & Turkey Recipe In Broth