What Is Egg Product?
At a high level, Egg Product is Eggs that have been separated from their shells. This Egg Product is usually then dried to form a solid-powder-like ingredient which can be sold in bulk as a component of animal feed or pet food.
Egg Product is usually produced from Eggs that are not visually or aesthetically pleasing and therefore can not be solid to consumers for human consumption.
However, as we will discuss in more detail later, Egg Product can also be extracted from Egg Shells after they have been cracked for use in processed foods.
While it may vary, most Egg Product is made up from mostly Egg Whites, but some forms of Egg Product may also contain some Egg Yolk.
Because Egg Product is produced from Eggs, it contains very similar nutrition to Eggs, and we will discuss what this includes shortly.
Another note to make before moving on is that Egg Product is not necessarily the same as Dried Eggs. While these ingredients may be extremely similar, Egg Product tends to be the more processed version of this ingredient.
Why Is Egg Product In Pet Food?
Egg Product’s primary purpose in pet food recipes is to provide nutrition to pets, in particular animal-based protein and fat.
Animal-based protein and fat are the most critical component of any dog or cat food recipe, as we discuss heavily in our Dog Food Guide & Cat Food Guide.
Animal-based protein is far more digestible than plant-based alternatives, and many brands that use Eggs or Egg-based ingredients instead of plant-based alternatives like Pea Protein or Potato Protein are applauded by experts.
However, Eggs are particularly advantageous as they contain even more nutrition beyond their protein and fat content. This includes beneficial omega fatty acids, minerals like Iron and Selenium, and vitamins like Vitamin A, Vitamin D, and Vitamin E.
However, you may be wondering why these pet food brands would choose to use Egg Product over Whole Eggs. The main reason that Egg Product may be used in pet food recipes rather than Whole Eggs is that they are always a significantly lower-cost ingredient.
While Eggs may not be as costly as some meat ingredients, they are far from cheap, and pet food manufacturers are always looking to find ways to reduce their costs and remain competitive.
Lastly, there is a second purpose of Egg Product in pet food recipes outside of its nutritional content. Egg Product can be used as a binding agent to help hold the ingredients of a pet food recipe together in a consistent texture and format.
This task is usually given to gum-like ingredients, like Guar Gum, Carrageenan, and Xanthan Gum, but can also be done by starches like Potato Starch and Tapioca Starch.
You can usually tell if this is the case in a pet food recipe as the portion of Egg Product present would be very small and feature far down the ingredient list.
Is Egg Product Bad For Pets?
The problem with Egg Product is similar to several other ingredients that are used in the pet food industry – consistency and transparency.
Egg Product is quite a vague product, and some are concerned that this Egg Product is not just produced from the less visually pleasing Eggs and could actually be produced from Egg waste products.
A particular plant in the United States is said to produce Egg Product from discarded Egg Shells by extracting minor quantities of Egg Whites that remained with the shell.
The process to remove and process this form of Eggs from the shells is highly industrial and involves several chemical processes.
If that wasn’t enough, this Egg Product derived from Egg Shells is not suitable for human consumption, which gives you an idea about what type of product it is.
Other possible sources for Egg Product include waste Eggs from Egg hatcheries, which are the liquid within Eggs from those that did not successfully hatch.
The fact that it isn’t suitable for human consumption and the industrial and chemical aspect of Egg Product production is what concerns many, and they worry that this ingredient may not be safe or suitable for consumption.
Pet Food Brands That Use Egg Product
Most pet owners will be completely unaware of Egg Product, but their use throughout the pet food industry is massive, and some of the best-known pet food brands make heavy use of the ingredient in their recipes.
Some well-known examples of brands that utilize Egg Product include Purina Pro Plan, Iams, Taste of the Wild, Diamond, Hill’s Science Diet, American Journey, Rachael Ray Nutrish, Royal Canin, and Nutro.
The inclusion of Purina, Hill’s, and Royal Canin are particularly notable as these are considered the “big three” pet foods brands.
On top of being some of the best selling, these brands do the bulk of the industry research into pet food and pet food ingredients.
You can see a prime example of the use of Egg Product in a pet food recipe in the below ingredient list of Taste of the Wild’s High Prairie Grain-Free dry dog food formula, which is one of their most popular.
In this recipe, the portion of Egg Product is significant and larger than others such as Bison, Venison, Beef, and Tomato Pomace.
If you are concerned about the use of Egg Product in pet food recipes and want to stick to brands that use whole Eggs, we’d recommend checking out brands like Orijen, Farmina, and The Honest Kitchen.
If those don’t interest you, be sure to read the complete ingredient list of the recipe you are considering to ensure Egg Product is not present.
If you need help looking for a pet food recipe for your pets, be sure to check out our Pet Food Brand Index for a full list of all the brands we’ve analyzed.
