Sustainable dog food means: a complete nutritional supply for your dog and a recipe that has a measurably lower environmental impact throughout its entire life cycle (raw materials, energy, transportation, packaging).
Your dog's diet has a major impact on its health and well-being. Therefore, you should always make sure to choose a high-quality food. However, with so many manufacturers and products on the market, this is sometimes easier said than done. In the following, we will tell you how to recognize healthy and sustainable dog food. Make sure that you are not only doing something good for your dog, but also for the environment.
From: Alena Thielert
Sustainable dog food should promote your dog's health and at the same time reduce the impact on the environment. This means that it is produced as environmentally friendly and resource-saving as possible under ethical conditions. This can be achieved through regional ingredients, recyclable packaging and environmentally friendly production processes. Ultimately, the aim is to minimize your dog's carbon footprint and conserve natural resources without compromising on quality and nutrition.
According to a study by TU Berlin, feeding your dog alone accounts for up to 90% of its carbon footprint. Plant-based or vegan recipes often perform better because they do not require resource-intensive animal-based raw materials. This is mainly due to the animal ingredients, which usually come from factory farming. Studies from Edinburgh, and other Scientific Reports worldwide confirm once again: animal feed causes globally relevant emissions. Raw animal products and wet food variants drive the balance, while dry and low-meat/vegan options are usually more climate-friendly.
So if you want to feed your four-legged friend sustainably, you should consider a few aspects when choosing dog food. The best thing to do first is to find out whether the manufacturer really cares about animal welfare. Do the animals have the best possible living conditions? Is it organic farming, free-range farming or sustainable fishing? If this is the case, the manufacturer will definitely point this out. When it comes to manufacturer information, don't just look for promises, but for transparent key figures (e.g. LCA, energy origin) and independent evidence.
Insects are an environmentally friendly alternative to meat and fish. They require little space and can be 100% processed. This is why more and more manufacturers are using insect proteins in their dog food to reduce CO₂ emissions.
If you want to feed your furry friend a particularly sustainable diet, you can also switch to vegan dog food, such as that from
Regardless of the dog itself: As no animal ingredients are used, the CO₂ pawprint is minimal. In addition, there is no animal suffering during production.
By the way: Animal proteins (e.g. beef, dairy products, chicken, wheat) are among the most common triggers for food allergies, so a plant-based recipe can be useful as part of an exclusion diet (always have veterinary advice). Our hypoallergenic food developed by vets is also suitable for dogs with food allergies and intolerances. Animal proteins are often among the main allergens for dogs.
You don't necessarily have to feed your four-legged friend a vegan diet seven days a week. Just one or two veggie days a week can help to feed your pet more sustainably.
Homemade food does not automatically have a better carbon footprint. The ingredients are crucial! Industrially produced dog food often generates a lot of packaging waste - be it plastic bags for dry food or cans for wet food. Although more attention is being paid to recyclable packaging for organic food, the carbon footprint is still higher here than with home-cooked food. If you prepare your dog food yourself, you always know exactly what ends up in your dog's bowl. You can buy regional ingredients with as little packaging as possible and also make sure that the meat comes from animals raised in a species-appropriate manner. Nevertheless, please make sure that you only cook with special recipes from animal nutrition and suitable mineral/vitamin supplements (supplementary feed) - otherwise there is a risk of nutritional deficiencies. If you cook your own food, it is best to choose regional, preferably unpackaged ingredients and have the ration checked regularly by a vet.
If you want to cook for your furry friend yourself: Our VISH OIL and the ALL-IN-VELUXE complementary feed support the supply of home-cooked rations to cover requirements. Ideal as a supplement to a professionally prepared recipe.
Environmentally friendly dog food is characterized by various criteria that take into account both the health of your dog and the protection of the environment. You can recognize sustainable food by the following characteristics, among others:
More and more manufacturers are striving to produce as sustainably as possible. Nevertheless, there is still room for improvement
even among environmentally conscious feed manufacturersWe at
Our recipes are developed by veterinarians and designed as complete plant-based foods, with a focus on well-tolerated, nutrient-rich ingredients and resource-saving production in Germany.
With every purchase of our products, you not only leave a green pawprint, but also save animal lives and support our
Alena Thielert
