How we formulate, verify, and portion
The standards our recipes are built against, the lab work behind them, and the math that decides how much lands in your dog’s bowl — including what we measure and what we only calculate.
How we formulate
Every recipe is formulated against the AAFCO Dog Food Nutrient Profiles before a single batch is cooked.
Start from the profile
Adult maintenance minimums define the floor a recipe has to clear before it is worth cooking. They are a floor, not a target.
Constrain the ratios
Calcium-to-phosphorus windows and the fiber ceiling bound the formula from above as much as the minimums bound it from below.
Whole-food first
Named muscle meat, organ and vegetables carry the profile — no fillers, by-products, or artificial additives.
| Nutrient | Adult maintenance | Growth & reproduction |
|---|---|---|
| Protein | 18% min | 22% min |
| Fat | 5.5% min | 8% min |
| Fiber | 8% max | 8% max |
| Moisture | 80% max | 80% max |
| Calcium† | 600–1800 mg/100g | 1000–2500 mg/100g |
| Phosphorus† | 500–1600 mg/100g | 800–1600 mg/100g |
| EPA+DHA† | 50 mg/100g min | 50 mg/100g min |
| Potassium† | 600 mg/100g min | 600 mg/100g min |
| Sodium† | 80 mg/100g min | 300 mg/100g min |
| Magnesium† | 60 mg/100g min | 60 mg/100g min |
| Zinc† | 80 ppm min | 100 ppm min |
| Iron† | 40 ppm min | 88 ppm min |
| Copper† | 7.3 ppm min | 12.4 ppm min |
| Manganese† | 5 ppm min | 7.2 ppm min |
Threshold defined on a dry-matter basis (Calcium, Phosphorus, EPA+DHA, Potassium, Sodium, Magnesium, Zinc, Iron, Copper, Manganese). Fresh food is mostly water, so an as-fed number understates these against the profile — we divide by (1 − moisture %) before comparing. Macronutrient percentages are compared as-fed, on the guaranteed-analysis convention.
Source: AAFCO Dog Food Nutrient Profiles. These are the profile bounds, not any one NouriPet recipe’s analysis — for a specific recipe’s numbers, see its own page or the published lab reports below.
How we verify
Formulating to a standard is a claim. Sending the finished food to an accredited lab is the check on it.
Chain of custody
- 1
Batch cooked to the published formulation
Every batch follows the same documented ingredient masses — the formulation is the reference, not an approximation of it.
- 2
Sample pulled and sent to Midwest Labs
An independent, ISO 17025 accredited laboratory. We don't run our own analysis.
- 3
Proximate and mineral panels returned
Moisture, crude protein, crude fat, crude fiber and ash, plus calcium, phosphorus, potassium, sodium, magnesium, zinc, iron, copper and manganese.
- 4
Report reconciled against what ships today
When a formula changed after its sample was taken, we re-derive from the batch composition rather than quoting a report that describes an older recipe.
Measured in the lab
Read directly off the report.
- Moisture
- Crude protein
- Crude fat
- Crude fiber
- Ash
- Calcium, phosphorus and trace minerals
Calculated, not measured
Derived from batch composition.
- EPA + DHA — calculated from the cod liver oil actually batched against a published fatty-acid profile
- Calorie density — re-derived from the lab proximate when the formula changed after sampling
Why EPA and DHA are labelled calculated
Read the reports yourself
We publish our laboratory analyses in full — the complete proximate and mineral panels, exactly as the lab issued them. Both recipes tested meet every AAFCO Adult Maintenance nutrient the panel measures: protein, fat, calcium, phosphorus, the calcium-to-phosphorus ratio, potassium, sodium, magnesium, zinc, iron, copper, and manganese.
Improved digestion
Fresh, natural ingredients that support healthy digestion.
Our recipes use fresh, whole-food ingredients and gently cooked, highly digestible proteins — no fillers, by-products, or artificial additives. Balanced soluble and insoluble fiber from whole vegetables feeds a healthy gut and supports steady, comfortable digestion.
What fresh food supports
- Stool quality
- Firmer, more formed stools (Bristol Stool Scale)
- Gas reduction
- Less flatulence frequency and odor intensity
- Regularity
- More consistent bowel movement timing and frequency
Safety & testing
AAFCO approved recipes, lab tested for ingredient ratios and screened for pathogens.
| Check | Method | Status |
|---|---|---|
| Salmonella (nutrient premix) | Third-party lab | Tested |
| Ingredient ratios | Midwest Labs proximate analysis | Tested |
| Nutritional profile | Formulated to AAFCO Adult Maintenance | Compliant |
Testing protocol
Our AAFCO approved recipes undergo third-party laboratory testing at Midwest Labs to ensure proper ingredient ratios. Nutrient premix is tested for salmonella. Nutritional profiles are formulated to meet or exceed AAFCO Adult Maintenance standards.
- Testing partner
- Midwest Labs (ISO 17025 accredited laboratory)
- Recipe testing
- AAFCO approved recipes lab tested for proper ingredient ratios
- Pathogen testing
- Nutrient premix tested for salmonella
- Compliance
- AAFCO Adult Maintenance nutritional adequacy standards
How we portion
Portions come from a published formula, not a lookup table — and the formula runs on your dog's ideal weight, not its current one.
Resting energy requirement
Resting energy requirement equals 70 times ideal body weight in kilograms, raised to the power of 0.75.Daily energy requirement
Daily energy requirement equals resting energy requirement multiplied by an activity factor.Activity factors
| Dog | × RER |
|---|---|
| Adult, neutered, moderate activity | 1.60 |
| Adult, low activity | 1.35 |
| Adult, high activity | 1.90 |
| Adult, intact | 1.80 |
| Senior | 1.50 |
| Puppy, under 4 months | 3.00 |
| Puppy, 4–12 months | 2.00 |
| Puppy, over 12 months | 1.80 |
Feed to the ideal weight
Following the AAHA weight-management protocol, RER is computed from the dog’s ideal body weight rather than its current weight. Feeding an overweight dog to its current weight locks in the excess — the outcome fresh feeding is supposed to prevent. Where body condition score is known, each point above 5 is treated as roughly 10% over ideal.
Guardrails on the math
From there, grams per day = DER ÷ calorie density × 100. The formula lives here; each recipe’s calorie density lives on its own page.
Run the numbers for your dogSourcing & limits
What this page supports, and just as importantly, what it does not.
What we stand behind
- Formulated to meet AAFCO Adult Maintenance nutrient profiles
- Third-party proximate and mineral analysis published in full
- Portions computed from published formulas, not a lookup table
- Ideal-weight feeding basis, per the AAHA weight-management protocol
What we don’t claim
- No AAFCO feeding-trial substantiation — adequacy is formulation-based
- No disease treatment or cure claims
- No clinical outcome statistics — the digestion section describes what fresh food supports, not measured results
- EPA and DHA are calculated from batch composition, not lab-measured
- Not a veterinary therapeutic diet
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