In this deliberately selected panel of ten UK dog-food formulations, seven declarations named a common animal source for every explicitly animal-derived composition term we classified. Three included a broader or unspecified animal term. The panel spans seven brands and dry, cooked/wet and frozen raw foods. These counts describe these checked declarations, not the UK market and not food quality.
What we asked
A headline can name chicken or another animal while the composition also lists less specific materials. We asked a narrower, answerable question: do the explicitly animal-derived terms in a complete captured composition name common animal sources, or do any use broad categories? We checked the current manufacturer sources on 24 October 2026 rather than treating old catalogue text as verified.
Named source means a common animal name such as chicken, lamb, salmon or krill. It does not mean that a taxonomic species or supply chain has been authenticated. “Poultry”, “fish”, “animal fat” and an egg declaration without an animal source are broader descriptions under this rule. The classification records wording, not DNA findings or an allergen audit.
| Classification | Formulations | Denominator |
|---|---|---|
| All explicitly animal-derived terms name common animal sources | 7 | 10 checked formulations |
| At least one broad or unspecified animal term | 3 | 10 checked formulations |
The declarations behind the counts
Each row is one formulation-level declaration, not each bag or tray size. The animal-term column shows the terms used in classification. The supporting dataset retains the complete composition, source URL, capture hash, checked date and classification. Uncertain-origin materials are shown separately and are not silently declared animal-derived.
| Product record | Explicit animal terms classified | Result | Origin not established separately | Source and check date |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Butternut Box Chicken You Out | Chicken; Chicken Liver; Chicken Heart | All explicitly animal-derived terms name a common animal source | None separately flagged within this scope | Manufacturer declaration, 24 October 2026 |
| Burns Original Chicken & Brown Rice | Dried Chicken; Chicken Oil | All explicitly animal-derived terms name a common animal source | None separately flagged within this scope | Manufacturer declaration, 24 October 2026 |
| Burns Original Lamb & Brown Rice | Dried Lamb; Lamb Fat | All explicitly animal-derived terms name a common animal source | None separately flagged within this scope | Manufacturer declaration, 24 October 2026 |
| Purina Pro Plan Medium Everyday Nutrition Chicken | chicken; Dried poultry protein; Animal fats; Dried egg; Fish oil | Includes a broad or unspecified animal term | Digest | Manufacturer declaration, 24 October 2026 |
| Forthglade Chicken & Brown Rice Wet Dog Food | Chicken | All explicitly animal-derived terms name a common animal source | glucosamine; chondroitin | Manufacturer declaration, 24 October 2026 |
| Hill's Science Plan Medium Adult Chicken | chicken and turkey meal; animal fat | Includes a broad or unspecified animal term | digest | Manufacturer declaration, 24 October 2026 |
| Arden Grange Adult Chicken & Rice | Chicken; chicken oil; chicken digest; whole dried egg; dried krill | Includes a broad or unspecified animal term | glucosamine; chondroitin | Manufacturer declaration, 24 October 2026 |
| Natures Menu 80% Chicken Nuggets | Chicken | All explicitly animal-derived terms name a common animal source | None separately flagged within this scope | Manufacturer declaration, 24 October 2026 |
| Forthglade Chicken & Butternut Squash Wet Dog Food | Chicken | All explicitly animal-derived terms name a common animal source | glucosamine; chondroitin | Manufacturer declaration, 24 October 2026 |
| Natures Menu 80% Duck and Chicken Nuggets | Chicken; Duck | All explicitly animal-derived terms name a common animal source | None separately flagged within this scope | Manufacturer declaration, 24 October 2026 |
What the difference means
A named principal ingredient does not make every animal material in the list specific. For example, the checked Pro Plan declaration names chicken but also uses poultry protein, animal fats, egg and fish oil. Hill’s declaration names chicken and turkey in a meal ingredient; its broad-term classification is supported by animal fat. The parenthetical total-poultry percentage is retained as a summary of that ingredient, not treated as a separate unnamed ingredient. Arden Grange names chicken and krill, while whole dried egg does not name an animal source. Each therefore enters the broader-term category once, however many such terms it contains.
The seven other declarations name their explicitly animal-derived food materials, such as chicken or lamb. That result does not establish the origin of every technical ingredient or additive. Glucosamine and chondroitin origins were not inferred. An unspecified digest was recorded as an uncertain-origin term unless context established its animal origin. In the affected declarations other explicit animal terms already determined the classification.
“All explicitly animal-derived terms named” is deliberately narrower than “all possible animal sources disclosed”. Neither category proves the amount or quality of meat, digestibility, nutritional completeness, manufacturing controls or suitability for a particular dog. A broad term is a finding about the checked wording, not evidence of poor ingredients. A specific term is not a safety guarantee.
Methods and selection
We used a purposive editorial panel of existing UK adult-maintenance dog-food product records. We selected foods to support useful owner comparisons and to include more than one format and at least five brands. The final ten-formulation panel contains seven brands: Butternut Box, Burns, Purina Pro Plan, Forthglade, Hill’s, Arden Grange and Natures Menu. It contains five dry, three cooked/wet and two frozen raw formulations. Selection was not based on affiliate eligibility, a desired naming result or market share.
Rules were written before calculation and retained with the analysis. We first required an exact published EP product identity and a complete composition from the matching current manufacturer page. We then retained source text, inspected the animal terms and applied the two categories. Different pack sizes of one recipe do not add rows. If a manufacturer links different recipes to different packs, we do not merge them.
Thirteen candidates were considered, ten were included and three were excluded. The candidate exclusion log records: Lily’s Kitchen Chicken & Duck, because the current page gives two recipe versions and the matching recipe/version and availability were not resolved; James Wellbeloved Adult Turkey & Rice, because composition was not exposed in the retrieved official page; and a Nutriment chicken lead with unresolved current identity/status. Excluded candidates do not enter the denominator.
We classify food-material wording. We do not infer animal origin from “oils and fats”, technical ingredients or additive names. Nested amounts are preserved and not added to their parent percentage to invent a total meat content. The method uses declarations rather than an analysis of purchased batches. These checks cover declaration wording only. They do not establish that the food was independently tested or nutritionally assessed.
Missing information and limits
“Not found in the checked page” differs from “not captured by EP” and from a manufacturer refusing to disclose information. Our source scope does not support the last claim. Dynamic-page capture failures can hide information that exists elsewhere. The public dataset retains these distinctions, including analytical basis, moisture and energy gaps.
This small convenience panel is not representative of UK pet foods, brands, sales or owners’ purchases. It overrepresents recipes useful for the accompanying comparisons and includes two recipes each from some brands. We have not estimated market prevalence, uncertainty intervals, a brand ranking or a trend. The result may change when wording or recipes change.
Source capture hashes identify the retrieved bytes; they do not certify that every source statement is true.
Download and reproduce
Download the ten-formulation supporting dataset and exclusion log (ZIP containing JSON text). It contains public product identities, declarations, dates, source hashes, classification inputs and results. It contains no member data or search-query exports.
Download the calculation script. Extract the JSON text file from the dataset ZIP and save it alongside the calculation script, then run python3 ep-animal-ingredient-analysis-20261024.py_.txt ep-animal-ingredient-panel-20261024.json.txt. Running the script without an argument also finds the sibling dataset with that exact filename. This reproduces the 7 and 3 counts and verifies composition hashes. Classification boundaries are described above and in the supporting dataset. Current manufacturer changes require a new dated source check, not overwriting this snapshot.
A concise finding to cite
Evidence.pet’s 24 October 2026 check of ten deliberately selected UK dog-food formulations found seven declarations with named common animal sources for every explicitly animal-derived composition term classified, and three with at least one broader or unspecified animal term. The panel covered seven brands and three format groups and is not a UK-market estimate.
For using these facts in a food comparison, see how to compare two pet foods. For what processing trials can establish, read the raw-versus-cooked digestibility synthesis. A declaration and an experiment answer different questions.