Protecting your pet: is organic actually better?

By: Shannon Sanders

Posted: 10/29/07

Chicken, carrots, peas, oats, fish, barley and brown rice.

Sounds like a fairly average shopping list for the health-conscious consumer - but for your pet? This is an example of what some proud parents are feeding their dogs and cats, and what's more, it's all organic.

A healthy combination of ingredients is part of the growing popularity of organic pet food, a trend that has been gaining popularity since the recent pet food poisoning scare in March. Owners are looking to organic for healthier and safer options as alternatives to regular formula pet foods, but the verdict is still out on the new food. Cost efficiency and questions on whether or not organic formulas are actually better for pets are two areas that producers and officials are discussing.

Last year, pet owners in the United States spent about $15.4 billion on pet food, according to the American Pet Products Manufacturers Association. Organic pet food accounts for about $10 million of that, but is steadily growing each year, said Kurt Gallagher, a representative for the Pet Food Institute. Buying organic is a trend that started in the human food sector many years ago and gradually moved into pet food products.

"Pet foods are designed to be the sole source of nutrition for pets," Gallagher said. "That means their nutrient makeup needs to be much more precise than human foods, and many such ingredients are not available naturally in quantities that permit large scale production."

This problem has aided in the development of organic foods for pets. Balanced nutrition and fewer additives has been the goal of many pet food producers in developing new foods and formulas.

Organic food, or food that has been grown without pesticides and manufactured without additives, is a growing market in the United States. Anything can be grown organically, but must meet U.S. Department of Agriculture standards to be certified. Manufacturers go through a rigorous process to be certified organic. Records for the fields where organic products are grown must be provided, and the land has to be proven pesticide- and chemical-free for at lease three years before certification can be granted. Also, the majority of the ingredients in a product must be certified organic for the product to have USDA organic labeling.

Organic pet food goes through all of the same processes as the rest of the organic food market to become certified. Everything from the fields where the ingredients are grown to the manufacturing and labeling of the final products must be highly regulated and monitored to be certified organic. There are no standards in place specific to organic pet food, which is why the industry follows human standards. The National Organics Standards Board of the USDA is developing rules for organic pet food, and the process is nearly complete, Gallagher said.

This growing trend in the pet-food market provides a healthier and safer alternative to traditional formulas.

"If you can do the same job with clean, pure materials, of course we are better off," said Gerald Kelso, a local veterinarian.

Organic formulas contain many of the same ingredients that are popular in organic food markets. Chicken, brown rice, peas, parsley and carrots are just a few of the organic ingredients Newman's Own Organics Premium Pet Food uses. Eliminating chemicals, pesticides and preservatives also eliminates the adverse affects that these products can have on both pets and humans.

After a recent scare in the U.S. with poisoned pet food, organic seems, to many, like the safest choice for their animals. Nearly 100 brands of pet food were recalled last spring after pets that ate the food became sick or died. The scare was linked to a rodent poison found in one of the ingredients.

"You know exactly what's in it," said Shelley Gunton, owner and co-founder of Castor & Pollux, of organic pet food, "and often you can even find out where all the ingredients were grown."

Castor & Pollux, a natural and organic pet-food producer, saw the impact of the recalled pet foods very significantly increase their sales, Gunton said. Although all of the recalled products are back on the market, some owners have made a switch to organic pet food.

The verdict is still out for many, though, about the specific benefits of going organic. Organic foods are cleaner, but there has not been enough time to do extensive research on the results of the diet.

"The comparison right now is just difficult because there are healthy animals that eat regular food and live a long life and healthy animals that eat organic," Kelso said.

Others say that organic probably is a healthier option for pets than most regular formulas, but the same benefits from using organic could be achieved by using any high-quality pet food.

"Organic ingredients should have a greater quantity and availability of micronutrients, such as trace minerals, compared with conventional grains in conventional foods," said Ken Coffey, a UA animal science professor.

Just as with organic pet-food, manufacturers of other high quality pet foods use less grain in their formulas than average foods and include more vegetables and meat. The nutritional benefits that come from these natural ingredients are present whether or not they were grown organically, Coffey said.

"To make a long story short, I just don't see a great benefit in organically-grown products in pet foods over other high-quality products."

Representatives for the Pet Food Institute, which represents 98 percent of all dog and cat food produced in the U.S., maintain that organic pet food is just another option for consumers and that it is not any better than normal formula pet food.

"The term 'organic' refers to the method by which a product is grown and processed," Gallagher said. "Organic products are no more nutritious or safe than non-organic products."

Cost is also a concern for manufacturers and shoppers. Organic products cost much more to produce than those that can be mass produced with fewer restrictions. The higher costs often help farmers buy more organic farmland and also to expand the organic market, according to the USDA, but consumers are paying twice as much - and sometimes more - for organic pet foods.

Using organic food is also on the minds of many area pet owners. Many stores in Fayetteville are beginning to carry organic brands for pets and Kelso estimated about 10 percent of his clients have already switched to organic pet food. Ozark Natural Foods, a grocery store that provides whole and organic food, carries multiple brands of organic food for dogs and cats, including Newman's Own and Pet Guard.

"I try to get food with less meat byproducts," Joyce, an Ozark Natural Foods shopper, said. "Good nutrition is my main concern and this is what my vet recommended."

Joyce has been buying organic pet food for her dog and cats for about two years because the formulas have fewer grains and cereals than non-organic foods.

Another area pet store, PETCO, provides organic options and was the first chain to carry the new Organix kit from pet-food producer Castor & Pollux. The kit, released in September, includes a variety of organic products such as canned and dry food and treats so that owners can get an idea of the organic line.

Castor & Pollux was one of the first companies to introduce organic pet food. The organic line was started in 2003 shortly after the national organic program was initiated.PETCO also carries Natural Balance organic formulas and Bellyrubs organic treats.

Not all pet owners are as supportive of organic foods, though. Some local shoppers thought that the trend was just that - a trend. The higher cost of organic food was a concern of some local shoppers. Others thought that the non-organic brand they normally used was "fine" for their pet.

There has been a steady growth of organic pet food sales in recent years, and leaders in the industry predict that the future will be no different.

"I do see the organic industry continuing to grow, and Castor & Pollux plans on growing with the market by making more organic products, flavors and formulas in response to our customers' needs," Gunton said.

However, cost efficiency will continue to be a problem for organic manufacturers. Since certification of fields to grow organic products takes at least three years, organic costs might get worse before they get better. It is going to be difficult for manufacturers to keep up with the consumer demand as new companies try to obtain organic certification, Gunton said.

"In the end, we just want to do what's good for our pets," Kelso said, "But we just don't have enough information to know yet if organic is better."