Carrageenan In Wellness Cat Food

It is extracted from seaweed through the use of a chemical solvent.

Carrageenan in wellness cat food.

This compound is a known carcinogen causes cancer and is not allowed in pet food. It s used to improve the texture of a wide array of products. Currently this percent is estimated to be lower but it is still significant. Carrageenan in cat food is one such ingredient and should raise red flags for every cat parent.

Some research says that at one point in time as much as seventy percent of commercially produced canned dog food included carrageenan in varying quantities. In short carrageenan is a food additive. As we said above carrageenan is a food additive derived from red seaweed. Carrageenan is a food additive used to thicken emulsify and preserve foods.

It s technically a natural ingredient derived from red seaweed or irish moss and it is common in human foods like meat products nut milks and yogurt. These foods don t contain veggies carbs fruits or soy but instead focuses on creating a food that mimics what cats would eat in the wild. Shredded chicken eggs ingredients are easily recognizable to humans which are not always the case in different types of cat food. Carrageenan is a common ingredient in canned wet or moist dog food as well as cat food.

Carrageenan in dog food. Though carrageenan has been used for years it has been something of a controversy since the 1960s. Both of these flavors of the tiki cat food brand are carrageenan free. It is used as thickener and binder in canned pet food as well as in many human foods such as ice cream yogurt and soy milk.

It s used as a thickener and emulsifier to improve the texture of processed foods. However the carrageenan used in these studies was not the same form of carrageenan used in pet foods. Carrageenan in cat food. Other studies that have used undegraded carrageenan food grade carrageenan showed no harm.

What is carrageenan in cat food. In cat food it s used to give wet foods a smooth creamy. These studies used degraded carrageenan also known as poligeenan. When carrageenan is cooked it has a gelatinous texture that makes it an excellent stabilizer emulsifier and thickener.