Nature’s Diet appears to be a small company based in Utah. Its products are made in facilities in Utah. They’re located along the Wasatch Mountain Range. The company website states its foods are batch-crafted. They use USDA-approved ingredients.
For our Nature’s Diet dog food review, we’ll look at the food ingredient quality and safety of each line of food. Our dog food reviews are based on these criteria.
IS NATURE’S DIET A GOOD DOG FOOD?
Nature’s Diet promotes its foods as being grain-free. However legumes are in the kibble line. This increases the carbohydrate count. It also increases the likelihood of having high pesticide residues. The company states that it attempts to use organic ingredients. The company states that it uses non-GMO ingredients. Non-GMO doesn’t mean they’re free of pesticides.
Nature’s Diet produces 2 types of dog food. They’re at opposite ends of the rating scale. Its freeze-dried line is low-risk by our criteria. The kibble-based line is high risk. Freeze-dried chicken is included. However, it’s not a main component. So this is essentially an ultra-processed kibble.
The freeze-dried raw line is processed in a vacuum chamber. It uses low heat to evaporate the moisture. The company also states it uses a form of HPP (high pressure processing). The average protein is 40%. It loses a point for having higher carbohydrates at 27.5%.
Several high pesticide/herbicide foods are in these recipes. They include peas, apples, spinach and kale. Several appear on the Environmental Working Group’s Dirty Dozen list. These are foods with high pesticide residues. There are also added vitamins in the freeze-dried foods. It’s a minimal amount. This suggests better quality ingredients. There are adequate minerals from whole food ingredients. There is no need to supplement them.
Fish oil is added to the freeze-dried foods. It would be preferable to add a specific named fish oil (such as salmon or herring). There’s no indication whether it’s from wild caught or farmed fish. Wild-caught fish are more nutritious. They have a better fatty acid balance than farmed. Farmed fish oil may not provide the omega-3 fatty acids your dog needs.
The Raw Kibble Blends is scored at 3.5. The company describes the kibble as raw coated or raw blend. It might sound healthier. However, it’s still kibble. Freeze-dried raw chicken is added. That might bump the average protein of this line to 30%. There are probiotics on the ingredient list. However it doesn’t state the guaranteed CFU anywhere. This is the “strength” of a probiotic. As a rule of thumb, 3-5 billion CFUs is considered maintenance. That can rise to 25-50 billion CFUs if your dog is sick or fighting an infection. Heat processing can destroy probiotics.
The line ranks low on the ingredient safety scale. This is due to ultra processing. There are ingredients in the top 5 with heavy pesticide/herbicide use. Ingredient quality concerns include high carbohydrates. There are excessive added vitamins and minerals. There’s also added amino acids. Recipes use canola oil which is inflammatory. When nutrients are added, it can mean foods of lower quality are being used.
Nature’s Diet doesn’t state the omega-6:omega-3 ratio in their recipes. This is true of most companies. It’s a concern because AAFCO allows a very inflammatory ratio of 30:1. Diets rich in omega-6 fats can cause chronic inflammation.
Let’s look at each line in a little more detail.
Nature’s Diet Dry
Score: 3.5/10
Ingredient List For Raw Coated Chicken & Superfoods Recipe: Chicken meal, field peas, lentils, chickpeas, freeze-dried raw chicken, turkey meal, freeze-dried raw chicken liver, tapioca starch, canola oil, sweet potato, salmon meal, chicken fat, dried tomato pomace, chicken cartilage (source of chondroitin sulfate), natural flavor, lecithin, salt, dl-methionine, choline chloride, dried cranberries, dried blueberries, taurine, turmeric powder, dried carrots, dried spinach, fructooligosaccharide, yucca schidigera extract, calcium carbonate, vitamin E supplement, l-ascorbyl-2- polyphosphate, mixed tocopherols, niacin supplement, kelp meal, D-calcium pantothenate, riboflavin supplement, vitamin B12 supplement, thiamine mononitrate, vitamin A acetate, pyridoxine hydrochloride, citric acid, vitamin D3 supplement, biotin, folic acid, potassium chloride, ferrous sulfate, zinc sulfate, zinc proteinate, iron proteinate, copper sulfate, zinc oxide, manganese sulfate, manganese proteinate, copper proteinate, manganous oxide, calcium iodate, sodium selenite, dried lactobacillus casei fermentation product, dried lactobacillus acidophilus fermentation product, dried bifidobacterium animalis fermentation product, dried lactobacillus reuteri fermentation product.
Nature’s Diet dry dog food line is high risk by our criteria. There are 2 recipes. They average 30% protein. There are 36% carbohydrates as calculated. The ingredient quality score is low due to having high carbs. There are added vitamins, minerals and amino acids. This reflects lower quality proteins and ingredients. The type of fish in fish oil is not stated. Ingredient safety also scores low. This is due to high pesticide/herbicide ingredients in the top 5. They also have natural flavor. Glam ingredients are included in this food. That means amounts are minimal so this may result in added vitamins or minerals. It’s not stated whether fish oil is from farmed or wild caught fish.
Dry Benefits
- Contains freeze-dried raw chicken
- Probiotics are added but CFU not guaranteed
- Non-GMO
Dry Concerns
- High carbohydrates
- Excessive added vitamins
- Excessive added minerals
- Added amino acids
- Source of fish is unnamed
- Ultra processed
- High pesticide/herbicide foods in top 5 ingredients
- Natural flavors
- Does not provide omega-6:omega-3 ratio
- Glam ingredients
View The Entire Review on Dog Food Reviews
Nature’s Diet Freeze-Dried
Score: 8/10
Ingredient List For Beef Recipe: Beef, beef liver, beef bone broth, whole egg, carrots, sweet potato, pumpkin, peas, banana, cranberries, purple potatoes, broccoli, apple, flax seed, chia seed, coconut, tricalcium phosphate, brewer’s yeast, kelp, cinnamon, spinach, kale, prebiotic/probiotic blend, omega 3 & 6 from fish oil, ginger, basil, parsley, sage, thyme, rosemary, selenium yeast, vitamin A, vitamin D3, biotin, niacin, folic acid, vitamin B12.
INature’s Diet Freeze-Dried dog food is low risk by our criteria. There are 2 recipes. They average 28% protein. There are 28% carbohydrates as calculated. This is higher than we expect to see in a freeze-dried, raw dog food. There aren’t any grains or legumes in these foods. That means carbs come from fruits and vegetables. Several vitamins are added. While it’s not a typical pre-mix, it’s preferred that nutrients come from the ingredients. The type of fish in the fish oil should be named. No points are deducted for minimal processing. It loses safety points for the use of foods with higher pesticide/herbicide residues. It’s not stated whether fish oil is from farmed or wild caught fish.
Freeze-Dried Benefits
- Minimally processed
- Includes whole foods
- Minerals obtained from whole foods
- Majority of vitamins from whole foods
- Non-GMO
Freeze-Dried Concerns
- High pesticide/herbicide foods in top 5 ingredients
- High carbohydrate content
- Source of fish oil is unnamed
- No omega 6:omega 3 ratio
View The Entire Review on Dog Food Reviews
NATURE’S DIET DOG FOOD RECALLS
To date, Nature’s Diet has not had any recalls or voluntary withdrawals.
Evaluation Criteria
We evaluate and score dog foods based on two criteria:
Are the Ingredients High Quality?
Here are some common low-quality ingredients or markers we look for:
- Is there excessive carbohydrate content, which can cause gut imbalances?
- Does the food contain unnamed proteins, which are low quality?
- Does the food use cellulose (wood pulp) as a source of fiber instead of real food?
- Are there excessive vitamins and minerals added in place of real food nutrition?
- Are there excessive added amino acids or plant proteins instead of expensive meat protein?
- Does the food contain inflammatory processed seed oils?
How Safe Are the Ingredients?
Many ingredients come from unhealthy, inflammatory sources or are full of pesticides so we look for:
- How processed is the food?
- Does the food contain known genetically modified foods?
- Does the food contain ingredients known to be high in pesticides?
- Does the food contain natural flavor, which are often MSG or animal digest?
- Does the food contain rice, which is high in arsenic?
Each food is objectively evaluated by these criteria and a score is assigned using the average of ingredient quality and safety. This is NOT a paid list and there are no affiliate links. Dogs Naturally has partnered with DogFoodReviews.com to make sure dog owners have unbiased, objective criteria to help them choose the best dog food on the market. You can view the full Evaluation Criteria at DogFoodReviews.com.
