The Grain-Free Myth

Why "premium," "grain-free" and "high protein" mean almost nothing on the bag — and what actually counts.

Before I explain what I feed, I want to dwell briefly on what I don't feed — and why. The dry-food market is large, loud and full of marketing promises. "Premium," "grain-free," "high protein" — these terms are not protected and say very little.

What the ingredient list reveals

What the ingredient lists of many well-known brands show is unambiguous: wheat, corn, soybean meal and corn protein meal as the second, third, fourth ingredient. These ingredients are cheap carriers of carbohydrates and protein. They raise the protein figure on the label, but that protein does not come from animal sources. For a dog that is, in evolutionary terms, a carnivore, these are fillers.

On top of that comes a structural problem: dry food is processed at high temperatures. Enzymes naturally present in raw meat are destroyed in the process. Heat-sensitive vitamins then have to be added synthetically. That is no scandal — it is simply what happens during processing. Anyone being honest has to say so.

I want to name one important exception: there is dry food that does not meet these criteria — products with genuine fresh meat as the main ingredient, without grain and soy, with a high animal-protein content. These products exist. But they are more expensive and harder to find. "Grain-free" on the bag alone is, in any case, no guarantee of anything.

Dry food and raw food compared

For typical "premium" dry food the main protein source is poultry meal, i.e. dried and heat-treated; for raw food it is fresh chicken, beef tripe and salmon. Carbohydrates: in dry food, wheat, corn and soybean meal as the second to fourth ingredient — in raw food, zero. Processing: extruded at 120–160 degrees versus frozen and raw. Enzymes: destroyed by heat versus fully preserved. Animal-protein content: 30 to 60 percent versus 100 percent.

Why I choose raw feeding

I feed a Norwegian ready-made BARF product: raw meat from a farming system that, by law, forgoes antibiotics in animal feed. That is not marketing — it is regulated. The products are fully formulated, meaning vitamins and minerals are added in the correct amounts. This fixes the biggest scientific criticism of BARF: the risk of nutrient deficiencies from poorly planned homemade recipes.

What convinced me: a 2024 study by the University of Helsinki showed that dogs on well-formulated BARF products reach comparable to better blood parameters than dogs on high-quality dry food. After just 35 days, microbiome diversity in the gut was significantly higher — more different bacterial strains, a better gut flora, entirely without probiotic additives. These are not advertising promises, these are measurable lab values.

"The digestibility and bioavailability of nutrients in raw meat are fundamentally higher than in heat-processed products — provided the ration is complete and balanced." — National Research Council, Nutrient Requirements of Dogs and Cats (2006)

What this is about for me: don't let yourself be guided by the terms on the bag. "Grain-free," "premium," "high protein" — these are not quality seals. Look at the ingredient list, at the processing, and at whether the ration is truly complete. That is exactly where it's decided what's worth anything in the bowl — not on the front of the package.

Sources & further reading

National Research Council (2006): Nutrient Requirements of Dogs and Cats. — University of Helsinki (2024): studies on blood parameters and microbiome diversity in raw-fed dogs. — Personal analysis of publicly available ingredient lists of common dry-food and raw-food products.

This article reflects personal experience and scientifically supported considerations. Dogs differ from one another — what suits mine need not be right for another dog.